SHU WPF Blog Blitz Part 2: Kierstin Cherry Kicks Ass

What a treat to have Kierstin Cherry here today! Kierstin is an alum of the Seton Hill University Writing Popular Fiction program and a fantastic editor and author. Read on for her story of how she came to write f/f erotic romance, and for a delectable excerpt from her new release, Blood Bound and Beautiful. What at title!

Please be sure to leave a comment with your email addy spelled out like this: jessicafreely at gmail dot com, because Kierstin is giving away two copies of BB and B. The winners will be announced on Nov. 13.

Take it away, Kierstin!

“What do you write?” It’s the dreaded question—the one we all obsess about, the one we practice hard to answer. We design our quick and dirty response, and hope for the best.

“I write epic fantasy erotic romance. Think of it like Tolkien but with sex, drugs, rock & roll, and badass babes. Remember Arwen, remember Galadriel? Now pretend they're protagonists. I portray women as strong, feminine, and capable of being just as heroic as their male counterparts, and I challenge the genre by putting a gay woman in the position of hero. In my work, love is hard-won, and happily ever after comes at a price. What happens when desires clash with the fate of the entire world at stake?”

That answer sufficed for many years, but recently, readers have begun to ask me a second question. “Why gay girl heroes?”

I’ll answer that in a moment. But first, for those of you who don’t know me, I’m Kierstin Cherry, author of Blood Bound & Beautiful, an f/f epic fantasy releasing from Loose Id on November 6^th. I’m best known for my vampire erotica and e-rom, and yes, I put the romance back in necromancy.

For a while, my answer to the question, “Why gay girl heroes?” seemed simple. I’m a gay girl. Makes sense, right? But the more I got asked this question, the more I started to really think about the answers beneath that answer.

It's easy to say, "Well, I'm gay," and just leave it at that. But here's the truth—growing up, I never had any heroes who were like me. Now, I'm a child of the 70s, (yes, I'm showing my age a little here), and growing up we had all kinds of cool heroes. Star Wars was new, and along with Luke Skywalker and Han Solo came Princess Leia, the most badass babe in the galaxy. Not only did she not wear underwear (it's true—they wrapped Carrie Fisher's body to avoid VPL), she kicked some major ass. She was powerful, both on and off the battlefield. She was smart and sassy and spoke her mind. She was capable, and she didn't settle for anything. She was a princess, but she wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty. In short. she rocked.

Then there was Red Sonja. Who could forget Brigitte Nielsen in a chainmail bikini? All that red hair and badassery. She played hard with the boys and kicked their asses. She threw down with Arnie and, despite the B appeal of the movie, was just as much a hero as Conan ever was. She, too, rocked.

Then there was Éowyn from Lord of the Rings. She fought alongside men and elves, and was just as much a hero as Aragorn and Legolas. She wielded sword and shield with skill and didn’t take crap from anyone, not even the Witch-King. She dressed as a man. Then she married one.

So, there it was. I loved Princess Leia and Red Sonja and Éowyn, but at the end of the day, they all went home with men. In many ways, they were very much like me. But they weren't like me. It was a disappointment to be sure. Everyone in my life was straight—from my real-life heroes to my fictional heroes. If the people I admired most were all straight, who was I to be gay?

So, that's why I write gay girl heroes. So young gay women don't ever have to ask that question.

So, for all you gay girls and fans of epic fantasy and f/f, here’s an excerpt from Blood Bound & Beautiful. Comment here along with your email and be entered into a random drawing to win one of two free copies. Enjoy!

Vladja looked upon Grace with such longing she felt her monstrous heart might shatter. There is a way…if you can kill her. Her Lady of Skins, chosen of the God of the Hunt.

Grace was radiant in life. Vladja could never steal that away from her.

With a heart-slaying smile, the Lady reclined on the Throne of Bone. Even after so short a time, her lithe body was at home upon the bleached spinal columns and skeletal barbs of the great chair. She sat there as if she knew the risk she was taking.

“Vladja. My Vladja.” Her gentle voice resounded, more powerful than the pounding on the doors. If she had wanted to, Grace could speak in the tongues of beasts. It was how they had first communicated, back when Vladja was more animal than Grigelf. “Come here.”

Vladja went willingly. She knew she shouldn’t. The Throne…the Marrowing.

Grace reached for her, tangling her fingers into Vladja’s short black hair. “You killed tonight.” One small hand slipped to Vladja’s collar, fingers trailing across the black gargoyle-hide leathers. The Grigelf queen smiled around her fangs as Grace traced the scars on her longcoat. Neither vampyr claw nor fang could penetrate her armor. Scratches and scrabbles, they were already healing, the gargoyle hide’s living leather sloughing off the damage as though it were never done.

She remembered the first time it had been damaged in Grace’s presence—the midnight skirmish on the Battledowns, the night Vladja had met the Companions. In the aftermath Grace had tried to mend the leathers in kindness for the Grigelf’s aid. The look on the Lady’s face when the longcoat reknitted itself was something Vladja would never forget.

And I shall never forget what happened after.

With gentle insistence, Grace pulled her down into a kiss. Blood smeared their lips, and Vladja realized she’d bitten hers. Her Lady of Skins sucked gently at it, tonguing the torn flesh. Her grip tightened, and Vladja relished the tension she felt in her lover’s body—Grace responding to her primal needs. She arched on the Throne, and Vladja straddled her.

The Throne. The Dark Enigma.

The moonlight had shifted, casting skeletal shadows across Grace’s face. Vladja took the omen with stoicism. The riddle of the Throne and its terrible consequence always hung over her. We are safe. As long as I do not allow her to have me fully.

Smiling in bloody innocence, Grace ran her tongue across Vladja’s bottom lip, then bit her hard. Fresh blood flowed, and the Lady sucked and licked, chasing the crimson flow down the Grigelf queen’s chin, over her neck, and between her breasts.

The scent of copper struck the air like harp strings, and Vladja felt her fangs elongate. The urge to bite ached across her body and stabbed deep into her core, but she mastered her ardor.

Beneath her the Lady moaned. Her lips were scarlet, and Vladja reveled in the sight of her, lusty and bloodstained. Lifting her chin, she kissed Grace deeply, seeking the taste of blood deep inside her. Grace bucked against her, urging her body against Vladja’s. “My queen.”

“Not yet.” How Vladja wished it could be true. But she needed no other reminder than the seat of bones beneath them. Not until I solve the Dark Enigma and take back my kingdom.

A very sincere thank you to the most excellent Jessica Freely for her support, friendship, and all around awesomeness. Check out her latest release from Loose Id, His Own Devices, coming soon!

A portion of the sales from Blood Bound & Beautiful will go toward the Tabby Fund to help a wonderful lady fight cervical cancer. You can read more about Tabby’s fight and her husband, horror author, ghost-hunter, and Seton Hill De-mentor, Scott A. Johnson at http://americanhorrorwriter.blogspot.com