In the issue, you will find a brand new Scarlet Order story called “Luftgeist”. The story is set during the time of Vampires of the Scarlet Order and tells the story of a rather fateful flight by Desmond Drake across the Atlantic aboard the Hindenburg.

Terrie Leigh Relf reviews Vampires of the Scarlet Order. She calls it “…a Chinese puzzle box of stories within stories, plots within plots. It is also a cautionary tale about love and friendship, acceptance and forgiveness, and the power forged by genuine connections.”

What’s more, you will find a wonderful four-page interview of me by Ms. Relf. I talk about how my work has influenced my writing, Tales of the Talisman Magazine, the appeal of Steampunk and much, much more.

If you want to check all this out, copies are available at: http://sdpbookstore.com/hungur.htm

Finally, I leave you with a brief update. Sinful Moments Press has decided to bump up the production of the novel Dragon’s Fall. Instead of serializing the novel, the whole thing will be released in a single package in early 2012. In the meantime, the price of the first two novellas in the series have been reduced to 99 cents at Amazon to give readers a special preview. Drop by http://www.amazon.com/Bondage-Dragons-Fall-ebook/dp/B004HILXKC/ and http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Quest-Fall-ebook/dp/B005DLNWTC/ to get a special sneak peak at Dragon’s Fall for a special price!

Admittedly, my ties to Japan are somewhat tenuous. My brother studied in Japan and has friends there. I’ve long been influenced and inspired by Japanese art ranging from haiku to anime. Still, because of those things, Japan has always felt like a neighbor in this world community and I wanted to help, but wasn’t sure how.

Then, Maggie Bonham at Skywarrior Publishing suggested a charity anthology to help those people in need. Phyllis Irene Radford came on board to edit the anthology and invitations were sent out to writers. I knew right then, I wanted to help.

I had a story in mind. It was an idea that came to me back when I was researching Vampires of the Scarlet Order. I read about a samurai called Minamoto no Raiko who battled a spider demon. I was reminded of Iktome from many Native American legends. I’ve long been fascinated by the ways that similar stories and characters can crop up independently in different parts of the world. For years, I’ve been thinking about a Scarlet Order story that involved Minamoto no Raiko.

That story finally came together for me after hearing the news of the earthquake in Japan. I called it “Experiment in Survival” and it told the story of how a well meaning elemental creature tried to help humans, only to have his experiment end in disaster.

People who’ve read Vampires of the Scarlet Order will recognize that the elemental creature is none other than Iktome, whose tampering in human affairs played a role in the creation of vampires.

I polished the story and sent it in to Ms. Radford. I was delighted when she accepted the story for the anthology.

Now, the anthology is available. Here’s a look at the cover:

Inside the anthology you’ll find stories, poems and essays by such folks as Jay Lake, Carol Hightshoe, Lawrence R. Dagstine, Jennifer Rachel Baumer and M.H. Bonham. None of us who have contributed to this anthology receive any money. Instead, we’re donating all the proceeds to Global Giving’s Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.

Now, it’s your turn to help. Go pick up a copy of the anthology at: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/89580. You’ll be helping your world neighbors and you’ll get a great book in the bargain.

Dragon’s Fall: Bondage is at http://www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/b124693/Dragons-Falls—Bondage/D-L-Summers/?si=0″.

Dragon’s Fall: The Dragon’s Quest is at http://www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/b124696/Dragons-Fall—The-Dragons-Quest/D-L-Summers/?si=0.

Fictionwise Multiformat books can be read in a variety of ebook readers including ePub for your Nook, MOBI for your Kindle, or PDF for your PC. Always great to see more outlets available for the books.

Update August 8, 2011: I see both books are climbing up the science fiction bestseller roster at Fictionwise. Thanks to all who have decided to check out the books. Interesting that my publisher listed them as “science fiction” since there’s almost no science fictional content in the books. They’re primarily historical and paranormal romance. Still, I hope people enjoy them!

Dragon’s Fall: Bondage is at http://www.amazon.com/Bondage-Dragons-Fall-ebook/dp/B004HILXKC/.

Dragon’s Fall: The Dragon’s Quest is at http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Quest-Fall-ebook/dp/B005DLNWTC/.

This just makes one more place you can dive in and learn about the origin of the Scarlet Order vampires!

In the interview, I discuss how I started writing, give some advice for aspiring writers, talk about how history influences my writing, and even reveal who I would be, if I was given the opportunity to be anyone in history! Hope you’ll drop by and check out the interview!

I just finished going over the proofs for the third book of Dragon’s Fall. The Dragon’s Love is formatted and just needs a few minor corrections and a cover. It should be available from Sinful Moments Press soon! Draco continues his quest and meets the captivating Alexandra. Make sure to subscribe to the RSS Feed (the link is on the lower right of the page) so you can get news about the book as soon it’s released!

This past weekend, I received the edits for the last three novellas of the Dragon’s Fall series. It’s always a little scary to see what changes the editor suggests along with learning what they liked and didn’t like. However, I must say the editor did a fantastic job and really helped me to improve the pacing and flow of the novellas. Part three of Dragon’s Fall is due for release soon. You’ll learn more about Draco. Also, Alexandra returns!

The Dragon’s Quest is the second part of the five-novella series, Dragon’s Fall. This novella is set in Britain at the fall of the Roman age. The story ties the Dragon’s Fall series to the Arthurian legends to create a vivid new twist with a paranormal edge.

Aonghas Deas-Mhumhan — called Desmond — is a dragon lord in the service of King Ambrosius. He longs for the king’s daughter, the beautiful Guinevere. However, her heart belongs to the king’s young ally, L’ancelot.

When Desmond and his friend Arthur are sent to battle Saxon invaders, Desmond is mortally wounded. He is saved by Wolf, a vampire who seeks the Holy Grail in hopes that it might bring salvation to their kind. Desmond knows he and Wolf cannot find the Grail alone. He returns to court where he finds that Guinevere is pledged to Arthur but still longs for L’ancelot. Now king, Arthur is anxious to remove L’ancelot from court for a time, so he agrees to Desmond’s request for aid in the search for the Grail cup.

Though Desmond, L’ancelot and Wolf find the Grail, they discover that an ancient being of great power defends it. Wolf is killed and Desmond realizes that they have not found the salvation they sought. His quest for salvation – and for love – will continue in the third part of the series.

For those who know Vampires of the Scarlet Order you may have guessed this is the origin story of Demond, Lord Draco. For fans of Bondage who want to see more of Alexandra, don’t worry, she’ll be back in the next installment, The Dragon’s Love.

In the review, Ms. Rhyes notes that there was relatively little sex for a book marketed as erotica. Of course “erotica” is different things to different people and how a book is marketed is ultimately the purview of the publisher. In my mind, Dragon’s Fall is a series that interweaves history, adventure, and sex to tell the story of three vampires and their relationship with one another. My guiding principal was that the sex scenes should feel natural in the context of the story and not be gratuitous.

Ms. Rhyes also expresses a desire to know more about the vampire Theron’s motives. It’s a fair point and in retrospect, I could have spent more time allowing Alexandra to learn more about Theron. However, looking at the big picture, Dragon’s Fall is not a story of Alexandra and Theron, it’s a story of Alexandra and the vampires Draco and Roquelaure. In fact, in the first draft of Dragon’s Fall, the story of Bondage was told in only two paragraphs. After looking at that early draft, I felt Alexandra’s story deserved more than that!

As for Draco, we’ll meet him and even learn a little more about Theron, in The Dragon’s Quest. Roquelaure will show up a little further along. As for exploring Theron’s motives in more detail… hmmm… I’m beginning to get an idea for a short story…

Thanks, Chris, for the great review! A nice way to kick off the new year!