Welcome special guest: author Celeste Prater ~ @Celeste_Prater @GoddessFish #erotic #scifi

Today we have author Celeste Prater visiting.
What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Celeste is the author of the Fueled By Lust Book series. She’s a former Marine, rides her Harley every chance she gets, and loves writing about sexy, alien hunks that know how to treat their females. She loves engaging with her fans, so don’t hesitate to contact her. She’ll answer back.

So, Celeste Prater, what/who inspired you to become a writer?
* My hippy artist dad was the first to push me out of my introverted teenage years by giving me a journal and a fancy pen. I dabbled for years and only got serious in January 2013. I finished my Master’s degree and was sort of in limbo and very bored. I decided I wanted to honor my dad by finally writing something I could share with others. From 2011 to 2013, I read over 600 romance novels just to see what had been done to death, what riveted me, and what NOT to do. My dad has passed away and is still an inspiration that keeps me foraging ahead.

When did you attempt your first story? What length was it? What's become of it?
* My first attempt was on an historical romance novel a lot of years back. It was about 136 pages and typewritten on a manual typewriter (I got muscles in my fingers from that effort). I started writing it when I was in the Marine Corp. Right now, it’s sitting at the top of my closet gathering dust. I pull it out about every six months and laugh my ass off. I was so focused on getting the historical accuracy down, that I failed to build in the believability of the characters relationship. I use that as the hammer on the head to get my crap together on making my love stories something the reader can cherish…and I stay completely away from historical as a favor to my fan base.

How many stories did you complete before you sold your first?
* I consider myself very fortunate that I was only rejected twice and got picked up in August 2013. Drusus was my first ‘real’ novel and attempt at submission. Siren Publishing saw something in my story and I love them for it.

What are the best and worst pieces of writing advice you ever received?
* The best piece of advice came from the first publisher that rejected my book. Well, they didn’t outright reject the first time. They asked that I resubmit after giving me the good advice of including more world building in certain areas and ramp up the heat on the sex scenes. I guess I was a little hesitant to unleash my full power on those type scenes. I let loose and gave them some good stuff. I think I was rejected because I bugged the hell out of the submission editor. She kept losing my revised manuscript. I think her email was eating it. I submitted it back through their website and copied her on it again. I then sent her a follow up email asking if she’d gotten it. She sent back a reply in less than thirty minutes stating she had a twenty-four hour turnaround window to reply and promptly rejected me. No way did she have enough time to look over the changes she’d requested. I’m glad it happened though. They take lifetime rights to the books, so I’m looking at that as divine intervention. Oh, and Drusus has since been nominated as a top 5 finalist in the SciFi/Fantasy category and placed third in the RWA’s Passionate Pink’s 9th Annual Passionate Plume award. (Yes, my eyebrow is raised in a haughty manner right now. LOL!)
* The worse advice was a friend trying to tell me that erotic romance was dead and that I should do a mystery. I constantly send her screen shots of my books on the bestseller charts at Bookstrand and Amazon. I think she gets it now.

The book you’re promoting, is it a stand-alone story or part of a series?
* Caelius is book 5 of the series. I’ve written the series as a very tightly woven story line. Each gets their own HEA at the end, but I strongly recommend that they are read in sequence. Sometimes you will see a secondary character interacting with the main characters in one book and then when they finally get their installment, I may give you the events that were happening to them at the moment you saw them in the previous book. Of all the books I went through, I never saw that happen. I always wanted to know what was behind the scenes of the secondary’s moments. There order is:
* Book 1: Fueled by Lust: Drusus; Book 2: Fueled by Lust: Severus; Book 3: Fueled by Lust: Cato; Book 4: Fueled by Lust: Lucien; Book 5: Fueled by Lust: Caelius; Book 6: Fueled by Lust: Maxim is in progress.

What sparked the idea for the story/series?
* A dream. No joke. Saw this group of hunky aliens forming out of a ball a mist. They gave me their names and I discovered they were a product of an ancient roman emperor stumbling across their world when they were still in their original pure energy form.
* The more I write on this series, the more fascinated I become. These stories are not about a bunch of aliens that land on Earth in a spaceship and do decadent things to the earth females. This is a story of a group of guys that are just trying to survive after a tragedy on their home world. Their lives, history, and needs unfold before your eyes. The sex scenes hold nothing back, but you’re also going to see the amount of love these males bring to those encounters when they finally find their other half.

*** Now for some fun info… ***
Would you/have you own(ed) a snake or some other exotic pet?
* The closet I ever came to having an exotic pet was the Horney Toad lizard I captured on my grandfather’s farm. They’re extinct now…no, I’m not an immortal and been around for thousands of years (big grin), the poor things were outnumbered by the fire-ants that are very prevalent now in Texas. Very sad. They were pretty cool little creatures.

Which do you prefer: rain or sun & warm weather or cold weather?
* Definitely like the sun and warm weather, despite my fair skin and tendency to burn to a crisp unless I wear 100 SPF. I ride my own Harley and prefer not to purposefully venture out into the rain or slushy environment. People on the road are dangerous enough on a clear, beautiful day. Give them some slush and they’re out to kill you.

If you could live anywhere in the universe, where would it be and why?
* You said the magic word…universe. I swear, if I can find that vortex entry somewhere in the Chinati Mountains of West Texas, I’m diving in and getting a good look at Insedivertus. That’s one awesome place. The more I dream and write about it, the greater my belief grows that there’s a smidgen of a chance that it really exists. Hey! I can hope! (wink)

If you were stranded on a desert island and were only allowed to have five modern conveniences with you, what would they be?
* The #1 item would definitely be a Solar Powered Generator. I was a Marine and could probably handle roughing it, but hey if I get an opportunity, I’m going to make sure one of those bad boys floats into shore with me. 2. A packet of toothbrushes and floss. I can’t stand not having clean teeth. 3. An assortment of knives. I’m going to have to kill something, so I want to do it right. 4. Fishing equipment (including pans to cook) for when I can’t chase down that thing I planned to kill in #3. I’ll use the knives to shave my legs. 5. My laptop that I can plug into the generator. I’ll lose my mind if I can’t finish these stories.
* Note: I was going to say a hunky, male model for #5, but I’m not sure if it’s politically correct to consider them a modern convenience. If you ever confirm that, let me know and I’ll change my answer. What? I’m just sayin’. (wink)
* Seriously, thanks for having me here today. I enjoyed the questions. Big kiss to my fans! Love you all!

*** About Celeste Prater’s book… ***

~ Blurb ~ * Caelius Meron strips at Heat Seekers Male Revue just so he can find his mate. So imagine his shock when he finds her in a cooking class he was forced to attend. So what’s the problem? There’s twenty-two of them according to Rhia Brennan. Undaunted by her claim that he’s too young, Caelius battles every roadblock she places. But what if one may be too difficult to ignore?
* Kallon Aceso knows exactly who should own his heart, but Ulixes Dionysus doesn’t appear to want it. But is it really something else buried so deep that it may keep them apart forever?
* Travel with these two Insedi as they both chase their hearts desire, only to be thwarted by misconceptions and mistakes from the past. Can they scale these insurmountable walls, or will they have to walk away and forever mourn what they could never have?
* Book 5 in the Fueled By Lust Series brings back the sexy males that make your legs tremble just by saying your name. ~ Excerpt ~ * The heavily accented voice coming through the phone oozed sexy, virile man and sent chills skittering across her skin.
* “I have a confession, my bellula.”
* Rhia wasn’t even surprised at the shot of tingles traveling her skin and making a direct beeline to her clit. He’d whispered that word across her skin before. She tried to steady her breath.
* “Okay, so confess.” Umm, he was growling now. That shit just did crazy things to her girly parts. She was toast. Fine hairs rose across her skin, as if tuning in to that sensuous sound.
* “I find it very arousing that you think of me in that way. Even when I’m at my worst, you view me in a positive light. I wish you were here with me right now. Do you miss my touch, Rhia?”
* She could barely get her words past a soft whisper. “Yes. Very much.”
* Rhia heard the distinctive rustle of material again and pictured him shifting on the bed. She imagined him sliding a broad hand down his chest, across the ridges of his abs, and resting just above his groin. She grabbed a pillow and released a moan deep into the fabric.
* “Are you in your bed, Rhia?”
* “Yes.”
* “Will you do something for me?”
* “Of course. Yes.”
* “Turn the TV off and lower the lights.”
* “It’s off and only the bathroom light’s on. It’s dim in here.”
* “Good. Tell me what you’re wearing.”
* The words spewed out of her mouth. She wanted to get to the next part as quickly as possible. “Button down blouse and shorts.”
* “Are you wearing a thong?”
* Her breath hitched.
* “Yes. What are you wearing, Caelius?” A low rumble sounded against her ear.
* “Nothing. Absolutely nothing. There’s a thin sheet resting across my hips. Does that turn you on, Rhia?”

***Buy Celeste Prater's book here***
BookStrand
***Find the other titles here***
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***Additional info about Celeste Prater***
* I was born and raised in a small town between Dallas/Fort Worth and Austin. Wanting to see more than my small Texas town, I joined the Marines, which satisfied my craving to see more of the U.S. and my drive to see if I could be one of the few and the proud.
* A firm believer in educating the mind, I have achieved several advanced degrees, the latest being a master’s of science.
* My true love is writing erotic romance, especially about alien hunks that know how to treat their females.
* Drusus, Severus, Cato, Lucien, Caelius, Maxim and many more have swirled in my dreams until I had to bring them to life and allow them to find love within the pages of the Fueled by Lust book series
* Book 1 DRUSUS was nominated as Top 5 Finalist and placed 3rd in the 2014 RWA Passionate Ink’s 9th Annual Passionate Plume Book Contest in Erotic SciFi/Fantasy Category, Book 2 SEVERUS achieved BEST BOOK review rating and won April 2014 BOOK OF THE MONTH Reader Poll at LONG AND SHORT REVIEWS, Book 3 CATO won the May/June 2014 BOOK OF THE MONTH Reader Poll at LONG AND SHORT REVIEWS. All currently released books in the series have resided made it into the Top 5 Bestseller Lists at Bookstrand.com within days of release as well as making it into the Top 10 Hottest New Releases in Erotic Science Fiction on Amazon.

***Find Celeste Prater here***
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Thank you for joining us here today, Celeste Prater! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your work.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Celeste will be awarding a $25.00 GC to either Amazon or Barnes and Noble to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave your name and email with your comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops (find them here: goddessfishpromotions-vbt-fueled-by-lust-caelius) for a greater chance of winning!

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