Hi Everyone!
Please welcome Kate Richards who is here today to answer my
probing questions about her recent release,
Dungeon Time. I'd also like to apologize for not getting this post up sooner, so in order to make it up to Kate, let's all go out and buy a copy of her new book. I mean it. Go.
Dungeon Time is the second in a series called Play At Work.
I loved the first book in the series,
Spanking Ms. Whitman so I was excited to read
Dungeon Time as well and chat with Kate about the two books and other stuff
that I feel like talking about.
Celeste Jones:
Spanking Ms. Whitman, as the title implies, was a spanking book whereas,
Dungeon Time (again as the title implies) is more of a BDSM story. Do you see a
difference between the two or are they variations on the same theme?
Kate Richards: I
see them as variations. Despite the fact that the spanking in the first story
was for punishment, it was more erotic than DD, and in both books, I see the
characters (particularly the heroines) as learning what reaches them in a
deeply sensual way. Every one of us is different, but the exploration of our
needs and desires is there to be experienced.
Celeste Jones:
Your series is called Play at Work. With so many disgruntled employees out
there, are you on a mission to change the workplace? Have you ever had a relationship
with a boss or co-worker?
Kate Richards: Yes,
actually…when I was in college I worked at a swimming pool with a lot of others
my own age. Those summers were a lot of fun and many of us dated one another.
It was a more innocent dating than these stories, but nonetheless did make for
interesting times! But I believe dating at work is very common, whether allowed
or not.
Very true.
Celeste Jones:
The heroine of Dungeon Time is Anna who is a receptionist at Marks and Company,
which was the setting for Spanking Ms. Whitman. However, in Spanking Ms.
Whitman the character was named Angie and you explained at the beginning of
Dungeon Time that the name was changed in honor of a friend. Would you care to
elaborate on why the change and why that name?
Kate Richards: My
friend has always teased that she wanted a heroine named after her, and when I
named Angie in Spanking Ms. Whitman, I wasn’t thinking that it was her mother’s
name. I learned while writing Dungeon Time that my friend’s mother is very ill.
I thought it might be the time to honor her request and change the name so the
book would cheer her up when she read it, rather than feel sad.
That's very sweet.
Celeste Jones: To
say that you have a lot going on would be a bit of an understatement. You’ve
also told me that you are very organized. Any tips you’d like to share for how
you get so much done?
Kate Richards: Well,
I hope I am organized. I certainly try. I am a managing/senior editor at
Decadent Publishing, a co-owner of Wizards in Publishing, and an author…and I
have the usual life outside of that, family and friends and another small
business for which I am responsible. Without spreadsheets, I’d be doomed. And
when I begin to feel overwhelmed, I write To Do lists each day. Checking them
off allows me to see what I accomplish and keeps me focused.
Celeste Jones:
What’s next for the Play At Work series?
Kate Richards: In
Play at Work 3, we enter the world of the big beautiful woman. My heroine is an
office manager of a construction company in Malibu, the land of the thin and
gorgeous. With a Samoan mother and German father, Jody is an Amazon, tall and
statuesque. It takes the right man, with the right mindset, to help her
appreciate her beauty. And yes…the hero
is a member of the same dungeon as Edward and Randolph.
Oh good. We chubby girls need good lovin' too. I think this is a great idea.
Celeste Jones: Do
the people in your life know about your writing? If so, what were their
reactions? And if not, what are some of the challenges of keeping your secret
life a secret?
Kate Richards: Everyone
knows. I am a fulltime writer and editor, so I don’t have an employer to answer
to. But my mother does have the tendency to tell her friends I will be
switching genres eventually. In fact, she tells my friends that, too. But she’s
proud of me even if she wishes I’d write mysteries—because that is what she
likes to read best.
Celeste Jones:
Anything else you’d like to say?
Thank you so much for having me. I hope the readers will
check out Dungeon Time and let me know what they think. I had it partly written
when I had the opportunity to visit a real dungeon and speak with the Doms,
Dommes, and subs who were there that night. They were so open and friendly,
happy to speak with someone who was interested in what they are passionate
about. I believe in research whenever possible and this was invaluable.
Oh, I want more details about that for sure.
My blog: http//katerichards.wordpress.com
Dungeon Time Blurb
and Excerpt
Short Blurb:
Anna Palladino dreams of independence from her
over-protective but loving family. Her fantasies, gained from erotic novels,
show her possibilities she doesn’t believe extend to real life. Her limited experience in the bedroom has
confirmed her low expectations.
Edward Masters is ready to give up his own fantasy life if
that’s what it takes to have the home and family of his dreams. He has set his
sights on a sweet, innocent woman who works for his friend and client Randolph
Marks. Marks has found the perfect combination of vixen and warm companion in
his Mona, but is it too much to hope that Edward and Anna will be the next
office romance at Marks and Company? Is the cute, curly haired receptionist
ready to take on the desires of a Dom, or has Edward seen his last night of
play in the dungeon?
Excerpt:
Edward closed the door
with a soft click and approached, Nikes squeaking on the wide oak boards. “I
like my comforts.” He stood just behind her, his breath soft on her cheek. “Did
you want to take a swim in the pool? The water is warm.”
She shivered, something
about the way he said “warm,” implying so much more. “I don’t have a suit with
me.”
“Perhaps another time.”
He rested his hands on the sill, on either side of her, smooth muscled forearms
with a light sprinkling of dark hairs drawing her complete attention, but then
he pushed away and left her there, alone with the moonlight glinting off the
dark ocean and the swimming pool. “I’ll call for pizza. Pepperoni okay?”
“Yes, fine.” What if he
had suggested she swim without a suit? Would she have done it? Not usually, but
on the day of her independence, with so many other extraordinary things
happening, maybe.
While he ordered their
dinner, she focused on the pool, imagining him in there, stroking back and
forth with the moon shining on his skin, lighting his hair. Muscles low in her
belly tightened and her panties dampened.
“Wine?” He reappeared at
her side and handed her a heavy goblet. “I hope you like cabernet.”
Her cheeks heated “I’m
surprised you trust me with it, after my behavior earlier.”
Edward rested a hand on
her waist and turned her away from the window. “Oh, yes. Not a good policy,
getting tipsy during the work day.” He took her arm and led her to one of the
deep sofas, against the side wall. “You were a bad girl.”
Reckless with freedom,
she giggled. “Yes, I was. Someone should take me in hand before I run
completely amok.”
“I think I’d like to see
what you’re like, running amok.” Drawing her down at his side in the deep
cushions, Edward took the glass from her hand and set it on a side table.
“Wait, I didn’t have any
yet.”
“Before you do, I want
to taste you. Then you may have your wine back.”
She tipped her head back
and licked her lips. Taste me? Edward
smoothed her hair from her face and cupped her chin. He held her gaze, his eyes
alight with a gleam that sent a thrill of fright and arousal right to her core.
I am so out of my depth with this man.
Coherence fled when his lips descended on hers. No softness, no giving, only
taking. His tongue parted her lips and plundered her mouth, circling, dancing,
and retreating, stroking against her own; rough velvet that left no part of her
sane.
