Candace LeRae

We are so excited to have the talented and extremely sexy, Candace LeRae on the Tears of Crimson blog today. She was kind enough to sit down for an interview, and we hope you'll all show her some love by sharing.

As long time subscribers of Tears might know, Candace was the original face of Tears of Crimson when we debuted in 2009.  She's graciously agreed to work with us again as we get ready to release the ReVamped version of the original Tears of Crimson vampire Romance.  So please take a moment to get to know Candace, and feel free to leave comments.

Can you tell us a little bit more about how you originally got into modelling?

Oh, wow. Where do I begin? It was 2006 and I was 18 and we had just moved to Tampa. I needed a job somewhere close to my house at MacDill Air Force Base, somewhere I could work nights while I went to school and make good money.

I got a job at Hooters. I cannot tell you how nervous I was to start working there, but, hey, I needed a car! I was tired of taking Tampa public transport to and from school. Well, as you can imagine, pick-up lines came a dime a dozen. The most common was “you should be a model". That is what put the original idea into my head. I did some online searching for different talent agencies.

Most of it required head-shots for any application submissions. So, I had my first task. I looked around for photographers but everyone charge ridiculous amounts of money. I started searching for cash and came across a few websites with up-to-date listings for my area. I showed up to a few, got booked for runway shows, and the rest is pretty much history.

We've heard you did an independent movie?  Is that right?  Could you tell us a little more about that?

Yes, I was involved, however, very Minor, in a production called, " The Skyship Chronicles". Written and directed by Jeff Zampino and Christian Cashmir of Litewave Media. www.skyshipchronicles.com " Gustav, an evil scientist steals the inventions of a rival inventor. Victory turns to defeat as Gustav learns the inventions are useless without the power source, which the clever inventor has hidden.

30 years later, Adam, a young man from rural Kansas finds the power source while working at a post office. Upon opening the lead-lined box, two women appear from out of nowhere, and carry Adam off, just as Gustav's skyship appears.

After 30 years of hunting, Gustav is on the trail, and he will stop at nothing." I do believe it is still in the production stage and I am not sure of the release date. I do, however, know that it will be shown in Ybor City at a red carpet event when it is completed. You can check them out on Facebook; Litewave Media - Video Production.

Is it true you’re also an artist?

I would like to think myself an artist, albeit, an eccentric one. I love to work in pencil, acrylic, and clay the most but I also write, collage, diorama, crochet, so, make jewelry, perform alchemy, and the list could go on. I am very creative and tend to express it in any way I am mused at the time.

I saw on facebook that you also own a health food store.  How did that get started?

Yes, I opened a small home business called, “The Gaia Syndicate ", in 2003. I specialize in exotic fresh herbs, vegetables, and fruit. I also make organic teachers, oils, it mixes, and garden kit. I started it because I was sending out so many cultivars via various plant and seed swapping websites that I decided to centralize it.

I belong to quite a few online forums for plant and seed exchange and it is there that my eyes were opened to just how many people that do not have access to the "exotic" and often medically beneficial cultivars that I have been blessed with living in Central Florida. I decided to look online and see what was available so maybe I could help. Put people in the right direction.

 I was shocked at what I saw. Price gouging is all I can say. I was immediately heartbroken at the amount of people who are doing their best trying to live healthy by way of herbs and nutrition and were getting completely ripped off. I am talking about 200% mark ups, sometimes more depending on the cultivar. I opened a couple of quick online stores and began offering my wares at affordable prices. I was surprised at how high of a demand fresh fruit, vegetables, and herbs had online. The orders come in faster than I can stalk some days! I wish I had more time to dedicate to working on my website but I am in school 35+ hours a week until December 2014.

You’re a very busy lady!  What other projects do you have coming up in 2014?

Very busy indeed! 2014 is going to bring some major life changes for me. I will be licensed at the end of the year as a massage therapist. Hopefully my website will be up, running, and spreading the love of Gaia around. I am also working on a few undisclosed projects with a few photographers as well as a couple of art projects of my own.

If you had to choose just one goal that hasn’t yet come true for you yet, what would it be?

One goal, that hasn't come true to me yet is to become a holistic doctor. I finally decided to say, through it, and go for it. No matter how much of a quack people may think I am.

Are you open to doing other modeling or acting projects?  If so where do your interests lie in those fields?

I am absolutely open for other modeling and acting projects. I am so all over the map that there are few places my interests do not lie in those fields. I have to say, though, I am much more confident as a model or spokeswoman than as an actress. I still have that small self-conscious teenager part of me?

Where can we go to find out more about you?

To find out more about me, you can check out the awesome, " Candace LeRae " fan page Michelle has put together for all of you in till I can make an appearance back on Twitter.

Are there any words of encouragement you’d like to offer to people considering a job in modeling, art, or acting?

The only thing I can say those hoping to get into the field is ACTION!! Because, that is what it takes. Success does not happen overnight and neither does an entertainment career or hobby! There are many web sites out there where you can setup your own portfolio and network with others in the industry; hair and makeup, designers, photographers, artists, producers, etc. ModelMayhem.com is an easy place to start. You do not need professional pictures to start, just a few pictures that are an accurate representation of yourself in a good biography.

 Looks are awesome, but unless you're an a-lister, your personality is what books you gigs. As with any online site with ads and real people, be careful if you plan to meet. Always bring an escort I cannot stress this enough even for you guys out there. Oh, and most important. Self-confidence, it's the most attractive thing anyone can have. Don’t have any self-esteem? Fake it until you make it. You create your own reality, if you can dream it, you can have it.

Before you leave us, is there anything else you’d like people to know about you?

Before I go, I would like people to know that I am just like them, addicted to Tears of Crimson!

Bought for Love - Book One in the "You Don't Know Jack" series.  Alpha Male/Virgin Romance

You don’t know Jack yet, but he’s ready to meet you! Introducing Jack Duncan:  Billionaire, Alpha Male, Opinionated, and doesn't understand the word no. Trust me!  Once you've met him, he's impossible to forget!   Did I mention, ruthless?  You don't get to where Jack is now by playing things safe.  His motto? Saying no is not an option, but I'll let you think things are going your way.  

There's no denying that this charming, gorgeous piece of man is beautiful to look at.  Remember there's always a catch!  As Jack doesn't mind telling you, nothing in life is free.  Want to play in his world?  His rules, his choices, and your decision.  Unless he decides that your choices are the wrong ones.  You don't know Jack yet, but believe me, he's unforgettable!

You don’t know Jack, yet.  Once you do he’s impossible to forget.  He’s a ruthless, cold-hearted son of a bitch, and that’s just in the boardroom. Jack is also devilishly handsome, has a magnetic personality, and an ability to make you forget any reason you might have to deny him.

I met him on a whim, a simple woman who wanted the experience of meeting a billionaire for no other reason than to say I’d done so.  To my good fortune, or lack thereof, he saw something in me that piqued his interest.  I was enthralled from the first moment he said my name.


Like I said, you don’t know Jack, yet.  What he wants, he gets, and for some unfathomable reason, he wanted me.  Jack said I was untainted, someone he could mold into his version of perfection.  Before I understood what that meant, it was too late.  When a man like Jack decides you’re his, all you can do is hope to survive the aftermath of whatever plans he has.

That smile of his.  How could anyone in the world resist the charm of it?  “All I really want is to get to know you better.”  The thought of him teaching me sent a strange thrill through my body that I didn’t understand.

 

“And you will.  Tell me you’ll let me show you my world.  I promise you won’t regret it.”

 

His eyes met mine and the intensity in that dark blue stare, made me catch my breath.  When his long finger reached up to caress my cheek, I was pretty sure I’d let him do whatever he wanted with me.  I nodded. He kissed me tenderly and the breath I’d been holding expelled on a sigh.  

 

“The things I will show you.” Jack pulled me into his lap and I was so startled that I froze.  When he kissed me again though, I couldn’t object. 

 

Wrapping my arms around his neck I surrendered to that kiss.  The rest of the world faded to black and he opened my mind to passion.  I didn’t want to let go and apparently he didn’t either since his arms snaked around my waist holding me tightly.

 

I felt the press of his erection against my bottom, and it terrified and excited me at the same time.  Stiffening in his hold, I felt him release me.  “You make me feel things I shouldn’t.”  He lifted me off his lap and placed me carefully beside him in the seat.

 

I didn’t know how to rationalize his words, because I was still dealing with the shock of knowing he wanted me that way.  It was pretty heady.  This gorgeous man being turned on by my kiss?  I kept my eyes lowered and felt my cheeks burn.

 

“So incredibly untainted.” His soft growl did something to my body I couldn’t express.  Jack reached out his hand to a button that lowered the partition window from the driver.  “To the yacht, now!”

 

The way he talked to Dante was so demeaning that I found it hard to resonate the demanding man with the one that had kissed me so tenderly.   Jack Duncan was a very confusing man.

 

The tick in his jaw showed that he was angry, and I wasn’t sure why.  “Did I do something wrong?” The thought of disappointing him didn’t sit well with me, and I felt really insecure.  Maybe he didn’t like the way I kissed?

 

“Little one the only thing wrong is I want to make love to you and I don’t think you’re ready for me yet.” He chuckled and shook his head.  “Forgive me?”

 

I know people say you should be professional when discussing your background, but that's just not who I am in real life.  I'm a mother, wife, and author. Readers, I consider my friends, because you're sharing my imagination and that makes us closer than just two strangers!  I have always felt that I don't write a story as much as it writes me.  Characters consume my mind until I get so tired of listening to them in my head, I put them down on paper (computer would be more accurate these days).

 

I started publishing books in 2009, because honestly I was tired of keeping these stories to myself.  I was working as a Respiratory Therapist in 2008 when I was laid off, and I had tons of free time.  My youngest son was still at home in those days, so when he napped I'd write.  My husband and I made the conscious decision that I wouldn't go back to work until he started school.  Then the writing career took off.  I was making a better living staying home writing books, so I never returned to the workforce.  These days I do what I love, and have time to do all the things with my kids that a working parent normally can't.  It's been a huge blessing!  

 

Keep up with me on any of my social media links, I promise I'll return the favor!

 

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/authormichellehughes

Twitter:       www.twitter.com/MichelleHughes_

Web:          www.michellehughes.net

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Miles prepares for a fantasy that is just as much his own as the woman who desired it.  Can a virgin understand the concept of a sexual fantasy, and will Miles find he’s not as professional as he thought when living out a desire he’s had for a long time?  Amber may look like a little pixie doll but she’s been waiting on this experience for a lifetime.

Samson and Zoey are dealing with issues in their complicated relationship and things are reaching her tolerance level.  Will she be strong enough to deal with any scenario that Samson throws her way, or decide that having him isn’t worth the limits he pushes her past?

5 Nights - Top #100 in New Adult/College for Three Months

Creating a boxed set may have been one of the best decisions I've ever made.  For the last three months that little set above has been in the top #100 of New Adult/College and Romance Anthologies.  All of this books were ones that had seen their day in the sun individually and were starting to lose traction on their own, but bringing them to life was easy when I put them in the set.  I did offer something that I found lacking in other bundle book sets, these were full length stand alones.

Other authors told me it was a mistake to bundle, but as per my normal motto, I did what I felt would work for me.  The set made it to the top #80 overall on Amazon, so I think I'll call that a win!  Was I making a ton of money selling the books this way?  Depends on what you call a ton.  The first month it released I pulled in a $18,000.00 paycheck. Granted that type of forward momentum couldn't last, but in the last two months I've managed to make $6,000.00 and then the fall to $4,000.00 but hey that's a decent payday for three months and has allowed me a little more freedom to write without worrying if I was going to survive on book sales.  

The idea with pricing a book/bundle at 99¢ is numbers.  Obviously if you don't sell a score of books, you won't get the payout.  It was a shot in the dark idea, that paid off.  I think some of the craziest ideas we have as authors usually do pay off.  I'm a big watcher of what's trending on Amazon.  There's not a day that goes by that I don't look at the top 100 bestselling books in my genre.  When I decided to do the book bundle, that's what was trending.  Granted you want to be the ones setting the trend, but sometimes you have to just go with what someone else has already figured out.  I don't look at the free bestsellers, only the paid, because that's where you want to be.

On this free idea.  I don't do it.  I've tried it before, for one book series it worked, but on a whole I think the free scenario is a waste of time.  I'm sure there are authors out there that will call me out saying that it helped them, it just didn't do the trick for me.  I look at that from a readers perspective.  If I have a budget for the month and don't want to get the best books, THEN I will look at the free ones.  When I think quality, I think about paying for what I get.  Instead of going free I will kick off a series with 99¢.  Depending on the length of the book, I'll keep it at that price for anything under 180 pages.  That's a personal thing for me.  I won't pay more than that amount for a book with less than 180 pages.

On to higher priced eBooks.  I'll tell you write now, I'm not paying more than $2.99 for an ebook unless it comes highly recommended from people I really trust.  Which is another friend that's read the book and won't shut up talking about it, so I have to make myself pay the higher cost.  Believe me I don't discriminate either.  You could be J.R. Ward and unless friends are screaming about your book, my stingy little fingers aren't clicking.  I guess you can say I've been trained by reading tons of crap and paying an outrageous amount for an ebook that should have been free in the first place.  Since throwing my Kindle into the fire really isn't an option, I'm going to make sure if I pay $9.99 on an ebook that it's worth my time.

Did I mention I get a little over exuberant when it comes to books I read?  If I waste less than a dollar and hate it, I can live with that.  But ten bucks?  That's the price of a starbucks coffee and bananna bread, so you better be writing pure gold charging that price! A girl has got to have her standards!  So yeah, keep that book at under $3.00 and I'll buy what you're selling without wanting to smack you upside the head if I hate the book.

The boxed set was a great idea for me, and I think we're going to see more trending in that area for the rest of 2014.  People aren't making a ton of money right now, and they still want to be entertained.  Let's not forget that impulse buys are much easier for the reader when they start at lower prices.  As a girl who reads about four books a week, I know I'm more apt to purchase something new by someone I don't know if they keep it a price I don't mind paying.  Just my two cents worth of advice for the day.  Use it as you will!

Excerpt

“At Fantasy’s we offer something besides the socializing opportunities afforded to a bar.  We deal in pleasure, Ms. Summers.  Our clients are chosen by interview and only a few can afford the services we provide.”

Michelle lives in Alabama with her husband and four children.  As a former singer/songwriter, she began writing after leaving a successful career in music to raise her family.   Her love of romance began early in life when she use to “borrow” her grandmothers Harlequin romance novels.  When she began penning her own books she wanted to take those happily-ever-stories and spice them up with contemporary elements. 

Those who know her in real life say that she’s Betty Crocker when it comes to her home life and a deviant diva when it comes to her work.  There’s a hidden sex goddess in all of us, and Michelle enjoys sharing her fantasies with readers who enjoy a little extra spice in their reading adventures.


Website: http://www.tearsofcrimson.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/authormichellehughes
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/tearsofcrimson/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7390971.Michelle_Hughes 
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MichelleHughes_

If you can't beat them.... scream yourself into oblivion then change the title?  This was the only option that I could come up with for Whore, which as you can see by the book cover, I attempted to rename!  My first problem began when Facebook refused to let me advertise, claiming the title was against policy.

I was pretty ticked about that but decided if Facebook didn't want my advertising dollars, it was there loss.  So I released Whore and got several comments from loyal readers that they couldn't find my book without typing in the exact title along with my name.  I let that slide for a week, thinking it just hadn't had time to go through Amazon's search preferences.

Then I noticed the category for my book.  Erotic?  I didn't list it as erotic.  It was listed as a Contemporary Romance.  I went back through KDP and checked my categories just to make sure I hadn't inadvertently put the wrong thing in.  Nope.  The title was listed just the way I meant it to be, Contemporary Romance.  So I emailed them.  This was the tidbit of advice I got that shocked me.  If a book has been listed as Erotic it can't be listed in any other category.

Well I didn't list it as Erotic and since my people have clothes on the only deduction I could come up with for this was they didn't approve of the Title.  Whore was meant to be a play on words for the book, the (h) is a virgin for the love of Christmas! While I could get by without advertising on facebook, readers not being able to find my book because it was deemed pornography was unacceptable.  I mean come on... I write about virgins and strong men for heaven's sake!

I feel like I had no choice.  Amazon was obviously on a witch hunt and my book got screwed.  Selena Kitt did a great post on this: Selena's Post.  For my other author friends I highly suggest you go here http://www.salesrankexpress.com/ and see if your book has a red adult tagging.  If it does you might be forced to do exactly what I've done.  

So low and behold I get this nice little email from Amazon after I changed the title to Deflowered:

Kindle Direct Publishing <title-submission@amazon.com>
11:13 PM (7 hours ago)


Hello,

We’re contacting you regarding the following book(s), which are in violation of our content guidelines (see list below for details):

Deflowered by Hughes, Michelle (AUTHOR) (ID:4332246) - title

If you wish, you may make changes to your book (images, title, description, and interior content) to comply with the KDP Content Guidelines and re-submit it for publishing.

You can find our content guidelines on the Kindle Direct Publishing website: https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/help?topicId=A1KT4ANX0RL55I

We’ve set your book to an editable state. Upon changing your content, please re-submit your book for publishing and respond to this email at title-submission@amazon.com in order for your book to be made available for sale in the Kindle Store.

Best regards,

Kindle Direct Publishing

kdp.amazon.com


So Whore is an acceptable Title, but if I use it then Amazon will make it an ADULT book refusing to let it be seen in normal book searches and it can't be categorized as Romance since they deem it Erotic?  So after going through ALL that frustration I get an email back from Amazon saying they've reconsidered Whore and it is now no longer Adult.  Here's that email:

Kindle Direct Publishing <title-submission@amazon.com>

Hello,

We’ve reviewed your response concerning the following book(s):

ASIN: B00H3T3GS4

After further review, we have decided to remove the search restrictions so your book(s) will now be found in our general product search results. This may take up to 24 hours to process.

We appreciate your feedback and apologize for any inconvenience caused by this temporary restriction.

Best Regards,

Beatrice K
Amazon.com
Your feedback is helping us build Earth's Most Customer-Centric Company.

A New Adult Contemporary Romance from Tears of Crimson. 

Can a virgin be a whore? I guess it depends on your definition of the word. Working a minimum wage job, I was struggling to save up money for college. Things were tight but I was managing to scrape by. At least I had a roof over my head, right? Wrong. My mother was moving on to husband number five and decided to sell the house without giving me notice. The bank took care of that with a thirty day grace period. 

Taylor Ross walked into the coffee shop where I worked and offered me the perfect solution. His father was a regular customer and apparently thought highly enough of my service to mention me in his will. I couldn't just take money but when offered me a job with a great salary including room and board, how could I refuse? I didn't know at the time just what services Taylor thought I'd offered his father. 

He wanted me to embrace my inner whore and in return my financial worries would be over. There was only one problem. I had no idea what that meant. Taylor was willing to train me, so the only real question was what was I willing to do to have everything my heart desired?