by Madeline Moore



Slowly you come to me/ Slowly we shed/
The clothes of our doubting/and slowly are wed




Famous Troubadour

It’s four in the morning
but everything's okay
I’m writing you now just
to say ‘Happy Birthday’

Toronto is steamy
I like where I’m living,
they’re busy on Clinton St.
all through the evening

I hear that you’re working
writing your poems, singing in Europe
You were robbed of your savings, G-d!
I hope you’re keeping some kind of record

Yes, and John came by just to drop off the girls
we’re finished as lovers, for sure
It’s been good for us, we have grown
Apart, and for good.

I loved you, as John did,
your songs were about us,
destructive, creative
and tortured with love/lust

You were part of our courtship,
and part of our wedding
still we weren’t prepared for
the pain of our ending



And you treated all women
to a sip of your life
I took more than my share, now
I’m nobody’s wife

Well I see you, hair grey and wrinkly face
Silent One so full of grace
Well I’m dry again but
now I know how to wait

He took all of your albums
I knew they would help him
He cried all the time, just like me


It cost us so much
to be free of each other
a home and a whole family

It’s hard when you’re young
it gets soft later on
so much to collect, then
so much to be gone

Yes and thanks
for the trouble you took for us all
for showing us it's okay
to fall, rise, and fall

I’m so happy you’re happy
an old monk who’s still sexy
and living among us again

I said, ‘Leonard I love you’
at the time of our meeting
I feel like we’ve always been friends

John and I aren’t pals
No secrets, no sighs
but we talk and last night
we laughed at his lies

And thanks
for the poems and songs that you write
for helping us give up the fight
We're beautiful losers, like you.

Sincerely,

M. Moore



Some of my favourite quotes from Leonard Cohen's work:





Boo hoo. Sob sob.

Confusion is a butterfly net for magic.

- novel - Beautiful Losers

I fought against the bottle, but I had to do it drunk.
Took my diamond to the pawnshop, but that don’t make it it junk.
I know that I’m forgiven, but I don’t know how I know
I don’t trust my inner feelings, inner feelings come and go.

That Don’t Make it Junk – Ten New Songs

And he gave the wind my wedding ring

– By the Rivers Dark – Ten New Songs




I followed the course/From chaos to art
Desire the horse/ Depression the cart

– poetry - Book of Longing








Even though she sleeps upon your satin
Even though she wakes you with a kiss
Do not say the moment was imagined
Do not stoop to strategies like this

You who were bewildered by her meaning
Whose code was broken, crucifix undone
Say goodbye to Alexandra leaving
Then say goodbye to Alexandra gone.
Say goodbye to Alexandra leaving
Then say goodbye to Alexandra lost.

- Alexandra Leaving - Ten New Songs



Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in

-Anthem - More Best of Leonard Cohen


Visit this site for all kinds of information about LC.

Like love, I could go on and on, but that's enough out of me. I'm gone.
It's your turn to talk! Favourite quotes? Memories of Leonard? Anecdotes? Thoughts on his artwork or the movie soundtracks that use his work (there are 40 of them!)?

Oh! Just one more thing.



Leonard Cohen will be 74 years old on September 21. So, from all of us at Lust Bites to you, Leonard:

This is a special edition of Eye Candy Monday. Not all the pictures are pretty.

Remember, Charlie, when you smiled like this?

But you don't smile that way any more. For quite some time, shots of Charlie Sheen show a grim guy wearing a hat and shades.

Word is, you're thinking of getting gold teeth. For fun? Well, maybe . . .
or maybe it's because when you do smile, showing your teeth, you look like this:

Readers may ask why I send a Valentine to a guy who hits women.

This guy has hit women:

I think drugs and alcohol had a lot (I'm not saying everything) to do with why he did. And why you do.
Eminem had the guts to record a song, with Rihanna, called "Love the Way You Lie," that actually examines violence against women. It isn't really as simple an issue as we thought it was. I learned this from an abused wife I tried to help. Now, we've all learned it, from Eminem and Rihanna.

But he had to get better to make an album like Recovery.

You're in rehab now, Charlie. You could recover. Here's a guy who looked like he was down for the count, not all that long ago. This is Robert Downey, Jr.'s mug shot. He went to rehab and paid attention. And he did it. Day by day, for ten years now, he has stayed away from the same demons that are killing you.

Now he looks like this.

Charlie, you are the highest paid actor on TV and the star of a hit comedy show, Two and a Half Men that is now in its eighth season. You're number one, man. Except today the last episode in the can will air, after which the show goes "on hiatus." It's all up to you, now.
Please get better.

I'm not afraid. To take a stand.
Everybody, come take my hand.
We'll walk this road together.

- Not afraid, from Recovery, by Eminem.

Charlie Sheen, you are not alone.

Love, Madeline

by Madeline Moore




Yikes! Is that picture scary or what? Well, Halloween is coming, dear Lust Bites readers, which means two things.

1) Time to get your freak on!

2) Time for the Lust Bites Halloween Giveaway!

This year, we are giving away another massive batch of erotica books, penned by some of the best writers of erotica working today. That's right, penned by Lusties! First Prize is all of the following: Amanda's Young Men, by Madeline Moore, Enchantment by Olivia Knight, Wildwood by Janine Ashbless, Phantasmagoria by Madelynne Ellis, Roping the Wind, by Kate Pearce,Speak Its Name by Erastes,something spooky by Portia da Costa, and the so hot off the press it hasn't been released yet anthology, which features a number of us, Lust At First Bite.

Second and third prizes are copies of Lust At First Bite.



Now, to win this particular contest you must do a little more than comment.
We're looking for spooky submissions of no more than 200 words. It can be anything you like, a wee self-contained short story, a snippet from a longer work, or even a snippet for a book that doesn't exist. Get the picture?



Howl you should! Isn't he handsome? Don't get any fancy ideas about him, because, as you can see, he does not have a human head.

Here are a few examples. The first two come to us courtesy of Olivia Knight. They are excerpts from her novel, The Ten Visions.

Hallow's Eve in the graveyard of the University Church of St Mary the Virgin


They sat in silence as the other members gathered on the lawn
again, each with a glass in hand which one of them refilled.
'Excuse me a moment,' murmured the old man, his hand brushing
her shoulder gently as he stood. She felt a rush of her earlier arousal,
chasing away the sour feeling. Watching him walk towards the circle, she
thought, And why not? Older – but clearly not too old – if his eyes are
anything to go by… The image of him making love to her, slowly and
tenderly, flashed through her head. It was appealing…
'Sarah!' hissed a voice. She sprang around in fright: Jo was
crouched behind the bench. 'Please, you have to believe me, run! While
no-one's looking – trust me, your soul depends on this, keep quiet but run!'




A winter afternoon in Duke Humphrey's Library, in the Bodleian

The rich smell of books, shuffling steps of the librarian, and hissing
scratch of her pencil on paper, mingled with her thoughts. The silvery-grey
pencil lead shone under the glow of the table lamp; the tiny hairs at the
back of her neck teased her nape in the irregular, warm breeze.
'Sarah…'
She spun her head at the soft whisper. No-one was behind her. At
the end of the corridor, she could see the librarian quietly talking to
someone; no doubt a brief sibilance had caught her attention. She resumed
her reading and scratching.
'Sarah…'
She heard it again, hardly a breath but distinctly her name. Her
spine stiffened. The librarian and the other student had left her section;
no-one was in sight. Leaning over her books again, she couldn't move her
eyes from one word to the next. The hairs on her arm stood upright. She
waited.
'Sarah…'

Want more? Here's a snippet from Erastes:



He slid down my body, kissing my shoulder, arm, hip. He drove me wild with his lips, tongue. Teeth.

He murmured words I didn't recognise. "Subclavian, brachiocephalic, palmar, iliac, femoral."

"What's that?" I gasped. I could hardly concentrate on what he was saying because my cock was too interested in what he was doing.

"Arteries," he whispered, his tongue teasing the line of hair from my navel.

I wanted to scream with pleasure. "Are you some kind of medical student?" I gasped. I didn't care. His mouth was doing wonderful things with my balls, sucking them in and out. I couldn't have got any harder.. He could have said he was Lon Chaney at that point and I was sure I wouldn't care.

"No," he purred, "it's just an interest. A hobby." I felt his breath on the super-heated head of my cock and I nearly came from that alone.

"The sweetest of all," he said, "is the dorsal artery…and that's found…here."

Oh I screamed all right. When his teeth went in, I screamed. And screamed.



Over to you now, folks. Write us a scene, no more than 200 words, and maybe you will be treated to a bounty of sexy books, guaranteed to make your blood run....hot.
The contest starts now and will run until November 4. Winners will be announced on November 5.

Picture credits: Our werewolf comes to us courtesy of Chuff.
If you want to see more of his work, contact him at: tiger at wulistudio dot com.

The ghost and man embracing is the cover of Sleeping with Ghosts, the fourth album released by European alternative rock band Placebo in 2003.

Madelynne Ellis photographed the First Prize bounty. Thank you!

Boy Toys

I hope you're all primed and ready for today's post. If you've been following along at Lust Bites, you should be champing at the bit by today.




As long as there've been movies, there've been stories of older women and younger men. Who knows? Maybe even before movies!














'Say, Madeline Moore,' I can almost hear you remarking, 'I know about the cult classic Harold and Maude and everyone knows about Mrs. Robinson, but what's with The Rebound? Coming soon, oh impatient ones, to a theatre near you.

It is worthwhile to note that while all three of the movies pictured here feature the younger man/older woman scenario, not one is truly a cougar tale. By my reckoning, Maude is a free spirit and Mrs. Robinson and whatever the name of CZJ's character is, are a couple of MILFs. Definitions to follow but first a disclaimer: This post was originally intended to highlight my new Black Lace novel, Amanda's Young Men which is a true cougar tale, available in the UK now but not actually buyable in the US/CA until March 31, 2009. So...buy the book if you can, dear readers, and if you're aching for a taste of my story about a cougar and her boys, head over to my blog, http://moremadelinemoore.blogspot.com where I've posted a yummy tidbit featuring Amanda and her first conquest, the adorable Rupert.

I'm in love with my beautiful pictures of boys and I'm gonna use my space today to share them with you. Happy Independence Day to our American friends!

Naked Young Men Playing With Their Balls



My personal experience with boys is not extensive. I was afraid of them when I was younger than them and the same age as them and I remain afraid of them to this day. If you think I'm crazy, consider this - I briefly augmented my income with a stint as a school crossing guard. I dealt with packs of 'em and I feared for my life.



At fifteen, while living in Thailand, my first boyfriends were at least 21. Back in Canada, my first stateside paramour was nineteen to my sixteen, also Asian. As I recall, the four of them looked like this:

:


At the age of 27 I spent my first year in Toronto a free spirit. At that time I enjoyed a beautiful,eager, compliant boy, the perfect boy toy, but as he was 24 to my 27 I hardly think that counts.











Then I got married and after my divorce, hooked up with Felix Baron, the older man, which is a worthy subject for another day.

So, my definitions: Cougars have money as well as opportunity, and are stick thin. They run in packs. Their territory is upscale. They are tanned and wear a lot of jangly bracelets.

Consider the cautionary tale of a male friend of mine: He lost his heart to an older woman, accompanying her everywhere and sharing her bed. When she dumped he was devastated.




Happily, he had the good fortune to fall for one of her friends, which miraculously healed his pain.

And so on. It was only after the fact that he put the pieces together and realized he'd been used by a pack of cougars. His advice? 'Never trust a woman over forty in Doc Martens.' So, at least in Canada, a cougar will often be found wearing Doc Martins.

Now let us consider the MILF. She doesn't have to have a lot of money and doesn't travel in packs. What she does have lots of is time and opportunity and, probably, a rack. Because her territory is wider than that of the cougar she must be extra careful to stay on the right side of the law. I don't care how big his package is, Ma'am, he's got to be 'of age.' You know, like these guys:











When my children were both in school I returned to work. Curiosity got the best of me, so I asked one young man I'd come to know quite well, point blank, 'Am I a MILF?' The answer was 'Yes.' When I asked how so the reply was, 'All that messy eye makeup.' Score one for the working mom.

These days all I can brag about is having the ability to unnerve loutish young men (one at a time, please.) Recently one such animal hit the hood of my car as he passed and shot me a sneer. I granted him my very best, 'Come here baby and I'll make you a man,' bedroom eyes. His jaw dropped to his waistband. Score one for practice makes perfect.



Come to think of it, one day the leader of that horrible pack of roving fourteen year olds yelled (directly into my ear), as he rode his bicycle in the crosswalk, which you are not supposed to do, 'I'm in love with you, Crossing Guard Lady.'




How about you? Have any of my photo babes set your mind to musing? Or have you one of your own? Do tell.

As for me, though the pleasure of deflowering one Jonas 'I'm saving myself for marriage' Brother at a time would tickle my fancy, I admit, the one I'd want most,if I could jump into a time machine, would be Brad Pitt, although I'd make do with Clooney.

'What's the matter with this, Mad?' you ask:



To which I reply, 'Not a lot, to be sure. But what say you to this?'

---

Competition winner!
Madeline Moore's new book (when her author copies arrive) goes to random thinkables- please email telltale [at] primus [dot] ca with your details. To see if you won any previous competitions, check the Competition winners list on the right-hand bar.

---

A Bluffer's Guide to ... Contemporaries

by Madeline Moore

With the beautiful new Black Lace covers came three new lines: paranormals, contemporaries, and historicals. Last Wednesday, Olivia Knight offered a bluffer's guide to paranormals, and today Madeline Moore, (that's me!) will do the same for contemporaries. Next Wednesday, historicals will have their moment in the Lust Bites spotlight.



Top facts:
Black Lace line: contemporaries
Colour: various
Committed Lusties, past and present: Madeline Moore, Lauren Dane, Megan Hart, Portia Da Costa, Madelynne Ellis, Mathilde Madden, Kristina Lloyd, Alison Tyler, Nikki Magennis

In a nutshell:
"Contemporary" means in the here and now. No magic, no fantasy worlds, no Gothic or historical settings, no Oracles no minotaurs no highwaymen no giant scorpions no werewolves no...you get the idea. But! The novels can now take place in any part of the world, not just the UK, as in days gone by. The good news about writing a contemporary novel is, you don't have to create an entire fantasy world from scratch, or conduct anywhere near the kind of research necessary to writing a period piece. The bad news? You're still required to turn in the same word count so if you run out of plot - no extra battle scenes or lessons on the decorum of the times. Whatcha gonna write?




Behind the scenes:
The decree "It has to have a human head" is a no-brainer for this line. Realism is key, except whereas in real life you might lock eyes with a cutie on the elevator and daydream about him later, in the lives of our contemporary erotica heroes and heroines, linked eyes on the elevator leads to quick and dirty sex. But the sex has to matter to the plot, so the guy on the elevator would likely turn out to be a) Her new boss! b) The mysterious stranger who's been tailing her. c) Her lover, with whom she likes to play "stranger in the elevator", etc.




The heroes:
Black Lace is looking for more romance these days, primarily of the heterosexual variety, so yes, you need at least one hero, mixed in with the other men our heroine might sample. This doesn't necessarily dictate that he must be a tall, dark, handsome stranger,but he should probably be a decent bloke underneath it all. Since fate has not decreed that he will end up with our heroine this leaves the writer of contemporaries more wiggle room, but since it's a romance...somehow the ending should be HFN (Happy For Now) if not HEA (Happy Ever After.) Rule to remember: He must be horny; he must not be horn-ed.

The heroines:
She's a modern gal, 100% human, so she likely has some faults as well as a healthy libido. Often she's a looker, but not always, and she's usually under the age of forty. If she's fairly untouched at the beginning there must be a reason why. That one can be a brain twister. If she hasn't just left the convent or a bad marriage, and she's an adult, what's she been doing,sex-wise, all those years? Alternately she could be experienced at sex but jaded by the game. Somehow, whether she knows it or not, she's looking for love. Won't say: "No." Will say: "Yes!"




The best bit about writing contemporaries
• Right now, Black Lace wants erotic contemporary romance novels written by women. So if you're a woman who writes contemporaries you're in luck.
• You really can write what you know. Love fashion? Describe the clothes! Fine dining turn your crank? Use it to turn your reader's crank, too. Harbor a secret yearning to be a card shark, concert pianist or athlete? You may never get there, but she can. Love giving head but scared of anal? She's just like you!
• Fucking is reclassified as research: If what you're writing isn't turning you on, how's it gonna turn on the reader? Your sig oth will love it.
• All the world is your stage, baby. Your friends might not enjoy seeing their sexual peccadilloes published (though mine love it) but hey, it's not like they didn't know you were a writer when they spilled the beans.




The best bit about reading contemporaries
• Possibility! The story takes place on planet earth, in the present day. If it happened to her, it's at least possible it could happen to you.
• Chops! These days, Black Lace is looking for literary erotic romance. When you pick up a BL contemporary novel, you can be sure it's well-written, with a plausible plot and interesting characters. In fact, with the new covers, you could read these books in public without shame. Who knows? Your reading material could spark the initial conversation that just might lead to...
• Sex! Yeah! Lots of it, and not the "rocket into space" or "train hurtling into the tunnel" kind, either. Whether it's kinky, romantic, experimental, vengeful, wild or even wrong, there's gonna be lots of it, it's gonna be well done, and it's gonna be hot.

Top tip: internal logic
Of utmost importance when writing a contemporary novel is the very same rule Olivia Knight offered last week, only doubly so. Within your story, the logic has to be absolute and consistent. In regards to contemporaries I add this: the logic must also be believable. So - yes the plane needs fuel to fly, but no, in a contemporary, the pilot may not be a chicken.






What to say
• "Is this so well written it'll blow the socks off Adam Nevill?"
• "How does this make her feel? What does she think about this?" and, "How can I describe it without starting the sentence with "She felt..." or "She thought..."

What not to say
• "It happened to my friend." Doesn't matter. If it doesn't ring true, the fact that it is true means nothing.
• "My goal in life is to be published and if I have to write about yucky sex to accomplish that goal, then dammit I will!"

Over to you:
• What’s your favourite "contemporary" fantasy?
• Who would you like to see used as the basis for the hero in a contemporary erotic romance?

A note about the covers: I haven't included all the new covers in the body of the post, or even all the new Portia da Costa covers(!), due to space constraints. I chose to use at least one of the new covers of our members, past and present, and all the gala Black Lace 15th anniversary covers I could get my hands on.

I'd like to thank Madelynne Ellis for her technical assistance in the creation of the post. Without her, you wouldn't have this final image to consider as you formulate your comments: