Why I Wanted To Edit A Charity Anthology

By Lucy Felthouse (Guest Blogger)

Firstly, many thanks to Lisabet for letting me loose on her site today :D

Why did I want to edit a charity anthology? I’d been aware of Coming Together and their awesome works for a while, but hadn’t gotten around to submitting a story to any of their anthologies for various reasons, but I really wanted to support the cause. So I came up with the idea of editing an anthology as well as contributing a story. I knew immediately I wanted my fellow Northern Bird and partner in crime, Victoria Blisse, on board, so I contacted her. Two heads are better than one, it’s said, and I believe it’s true. Thankfully, Victoria said yes!

So we set about figuring out themes, titles, and, of course, charities. We agreed on Parkinson’s UK pretty quickly as we both have relatives suffering with the disease. And so Coming Together With Curves was born.

I’m extremely proud of this anthology for several reasons. One, because everyone involved has worked so hard and the result is an excellent book. The cover is excellent, the stories are excellent, the cause is more than excellent! I’m also delighted that it’s doing so well – gaining a silver star on All Romance eBooks just days after its release, yay! It’s always exciting for your books to get that coveted silver star, but when you know all the proceeds are going to benefit charity, somehow the excitement is even more intense.

I was recently reminded just how important the work of Parkinson’s UK is. My aunty, who suffers with the disease and has done for over ten years, came to my house. She’s in her sixties and has always been a larger-than-life and very active person. But Parkinson’s is an overwhelming affliction and has rendered my aunty barely able to walk much of the time, which is heartbreaking to see, and I can’t even imagine how much it must frustrate and upset her. In her mind she wants to rush around and do what everyone else does, but in reality she has to walk with a stick, as well as aided by someone.

However, her visit wasn’t all downcast. She’d recently been to see a physiotherapist who had a suggestion... try listening to music in headphones, preferably upbeat, marching-type music. She demonstrated by shuffling to the end of our drive with our help, then put in her headphones and pressed play. She then walked up and down the street probably faster than I could have done, getting back to us with a huge grin on her face. I had to fight to hold back tears. We’re not exactly sure why the music helps, something to do with tricking the brain, but we don’t really care—it was absolutely brilliant to see her go from hobbling to striding with the press of a button. And this is why I want this book to do even better than it is already, to fund research into the condition and to come up with solutions to help sufferers, however bizarre those solutions may seem.
What happened with my aunty felt like a miracle, and although I know a cure isn’t, unfortunately, close to emerging, any relief for those with Parkinson’s is a damn good thing, in my opinion. They deserve it.

Want to win a copy of this excellent anthology. Head over to Goodreads and enter, but be quick, the giveaway ends on the 11^th June: http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/52971?utm_medium=api&utm_source=giveaway_widget

Coming Together: With Curves Blurb

Curvy girls and the men (and women!) that love them is the theme of this charity anthology, edited by Victoria Blisse and Lucy Felthouse.

From Zumba classes to Burlesque dancers, all kinds of big and beautiful women are portrayed between the pages of this book. Read about birthday surprises, smut at the gym, horse riders, lusty couples, naughty neighbours, skilled bakers, rope bondage and misunderstandings from some of erotica’s best authors.

Sales proceeds benefit Parkinson’s UK.

Contents: Six Lengths of Red Hemp (Tilly Hunter), Cross Trainer Number Four (Lily Harlem), Bella Buxom, Just Squeeze Me (JoAnne Kenrick), Captivated (Elizabeth Lapthorne), Red Rag to a Bull (Victoria Blisse), Girl Next Door (Bella Blake), Lush Buns (Sommer Marsden), The Big Reveal (Giselle Renarde), The Wrong End of the Stick (Lucy Felthouse), Riding School (Bella Blake), Flesh For Fantasy (Lexie Bay).

More info, excerpt and buy links: http://lucyfelthouse.co.uk/published-works/coming-together-with-curves/

About Lucy

Lucy Felthouse is a very busy woman! She writes erotica and erotic romance in a variety of subgenres and pairings, and has over seventy publications to her name, with many more in the pipeline. These include Best Bondage Erotica 2012 and 2013, and Best Women's Erotica 2013. Another string to her bow is editing, and she has edited and co-edited a number of anthologies. She owns Erotica For All, and is book editor for Cliterati. Find out more at http://www.lucyfelthouse.co.uk. Join her on Facebook and Twitter, and subscribe to her newsletter at: http://eepurl.com/gMQb9

Why Curves?

By Victoria Blisse (Guest Blogger)

I was massively excited when my friend and fellow Northern Bird Lucy Felthouse asked me to co-edit a Coming Together anthology. I’ve been involved with Coming Together books from their very inception, in fact one of my stories is the very first story in the first ever volume. I love the idea and was very excited to be editing a volume for Alessia Brio. 

What was even more exciting was the charity was going to be Parkinsons UK, both Lucy and I have family members who are affected with the illness and wanted to do something to help. Giving our sexy stories and editing help to raise money for such a good cause fills my heart with pride and I’m sure the same can be said for Lucy.

Of course, I’m coming around to the question in the title. Why did we choose to do Coming Together with Curves? Well, for me it’s a no-brainer. Every story I write has an element of Rubenesque love in it. I write about big girls and I love to do that. Lucy and I chose to write about women with ample curves because we both believe there needs to be more of them featured in erotica.

One of my own favourite and often repeated sayings is ‘Variety is the Spice of life’ and I believe it’s the spice in fiction too. Lucy and I wanted to highlight the delights of the more amply endowed. To show that ladies with curves are sexy too. You get a lot of slim, big boobed women in erotica. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that per se, but I think you need to get a balance of body shapes in there to reflect that everyone is different.

I absolutely love the stories we’ve ended up with in the anthology, it is a real celebration of women and their curves. The ladies within the pages of Coming Together with Curves are proud of their shape. Yeah, they might have the occasional hang up but what women doesn’t? These girls are big and beautiful and infinitely sexy.

Here’s an excerpt from Bella Blake's "Girl Next Door” which illustrates perfectly how sexy the ladies in Coming Together with Curves really are.

***

The doorbell rang just as he was curling his hand round himself. Peter jumped and swore, colour scalding his cheeks as if someone had actually caught him in the act. He knotted a towel round his waist, and hurried to the door, silently cursing whoever was on the other side. Until he opened the door and found Josie standing on the doorstep. She was wearing the same shorts as the day before but her camisole was white today. It made Peter think of his fantasies involving her and the satin nightdress. His throat went dry as if he’d just swallowed dust.

“Hi,” he said, awkwardly, holding onto his towel with one hand and praying like holy hell that she couldn’t see the outline of his rigid cock.

“Morning,” Josie beamed. She brandished a small basket at him. “I made breakfast muffins.”

The freshly baked smell coming from the basket made Peter’s stomach growl. There was no food in the house yet but he was hesitant about inviting Josie inside. Watching the sensuous way she devoured cake was one of the most erotic things he’d ever seen and he wasn’t sure he could handle a repeat performance.

He should have known Josie wasn’t the sort of person who waited for an invite. She pushed past him into the house, trailing the smell of chocolate, vanilla and blueberries. Her hips and buttocks swayed with every step she took.

By the time he’d caught up with her in the kitchen she was already tucking into the muffins. Peter watched, mesmerised as she crushed a blueberry between her teeth, a drop of blue juice touching her lower lip. He wanted to lick it off.

“Which would you prefer, chocolate or blueberry?” Josie looked at him expectantly.

“You decide.” It was the best answer his lust-addled brain could come up with.

Josie promptly handed him a fat chocolate muffin. The cake was still warm, chunks of chocolate melting on the top. She took another bite of her own muffin, vanilla crumbs sticking to her lips and Peter swallowed. Forget self-gratification, he was going to come on the spot if she carried on with that.

“Um, maybe I should put some clothes on,” he said.

Something sparked in Josie’s eyes. “Why?”

Peter gaped at her, floundering for words. “Because I...”

Josie put the last bite of her muffin on the table. “You haven’t offered to show me round yet, Peter.”

“I haven’t finished unpacking yet.”

“I don’t mind.”

“Right. Okay.” Peter set down his own muffin. “Well, this is the kitchen –”

“I’m more interested in the bedroom,” Josie interrupted him again.

Peter’s throat was so dry now it was like it had been bleached by a desert sun. He had this crazy idea that if she went into his bedroom, Josie would somehow be able to sense that he’d lain awake half the night thinking about her and touching himself.

But Josie wasn’t waiting for him to lead the way. She was on her feet and moving through to the bedroom before Peter could even collect his scattered senses.

The bed loudly creaked as Josie sat down on it, her large frame causing the mattress to dip. Peter tried to swallow past the dryness in his throat. Seeing Josie sitting there, demure in white, with those gorgeously plump legs dangling over the edge of his bed – it was like his night-time fantasy come to life. She was staring at him and there was nothing demure in her eyes. They sparked with bright fire when she looked him up and down, her gaze slow, demanding.

“Lose the towel.”

“W-what?” Peter almost collapsed against the doorframe.

“You heard me.” Josie arched an eyebrow. “You think I haven’t noticed the way you’ve been looking at me? You want me and I’d like to see how much. Lose the towel.”

Peter’s hands trembled as he loosened the knot holding the towel in place, and let the whole thing sink to the floor. His erection reared up, straining almost to his belly-button.

Josie’s eyes widened in appreciation. “Looks like you want me a whole lot,” she purred.

Coming Together with Curves Blurb:

Curvy girls and the men (and women!) that love them is the theme of this charity anthology, edited by Victoria Blisse and Lucy Felthouse.

From Zumba classes to Burlesque dancers, all kinds of big and beautiful women are portrayed between the pages of this book. Read about birthday surprises, smut at the gym, horse riders, lusty couples, naughty neighbours, skilled bakers, rope bondage and misunderstandings from some of erotica’s best authors.

Sales proceeds benefit Parkinson’s UK.

Buy link: http://victoriablisse.co.uk/books/coming-together-with-curves

Visit the Coming Together website for lots more fabulous altruistic erotica, including Lisabet's vampire anthology Coming Together In Vein, which benefits Doctors Without Borders!