Men – Carla Swafford, Author

Love In A Small Town, Loving The Small-Town Preacher's Son, Men, My Books

New Release: Loving The Small-Town Preacher’s Son

May 15, 2023by Carla SwaffordLeave a Comment

Former Vegas showgirl Mary Hightower swore off dangerous men after the death of her mafia husband. To protect her and her mom, they move to a small southern town far from her past life to start a new bad-boy-free existence. Then she meets Luke.

Ex-convict Luke Blackwood works hard to be the man his mom could have been proud of, yet his bruised knuckles prove he’s a failure. Though his dad still believes in him, it may take the love of a long-legged, soft-spoken woman to repair what is broken inside.

When her husband’s former boss demands the evidence she has hidden, she turns to the only man she can trust. But is the reformed bad boy willing to do whatever’s needed to save the woman he wants for his own?

Will be available on Kindle Unlimited (ebook)

Paperback everywhere else

An Atlanta Edge Hockey, excerpt, Fake Play, hockey, Men, My Books, Video

A Tease of Fake Play

May 16, 2022by Carla Swafford

Yep. If you didn’t see it in an earlier post, I’m on TikTok. Be careful. It’s addictive.

@carlaswafford
Available with all major booksellers, ebook or paperback.#NHL #hockeygirl #hockeygoalie #hockeyromance #spicy #vegaswedding #booktok #Fakeplay
♬ FEEL THE GROOVE – Queens Road, Fabian Graetz

hockey, Men, Recommendations

Hat Trick, Power Play, and an Empty Net Goal

April 28, 2018by Carla Swafford

A few years ago, if you had asked me what the above meant, I would have thought you were talking about a new video game. For those who don’t know, they are hockey terms. preds goals
You’re probably wondering what is a nice southern girl doing becoming involved in a Yankee game. Heck, there’s rarely any ice in Alabama.

Well, first, a couple friends of mine mentioned that theyhad fallen in love with hockey. They talked about the Predators hockey team located in Nashville. Who knew? Just a hop and skip from north Alabama. *Mind blown* In fact, one is a billet parent (takes in an out-of-town teenage hockey player into her home) and her enthusiasm is contagious.

Then about a couple months or so, I listen to the audios of Sawyer Bennett’s Cold Fury Hockey series. *sigh* Loved them! It caught my interest. Not just for the men, but some of things she brought up about the game. I can’t pinpoint what, but anyway, I decided to check it out on TV and fell in love.

How in the hell do those big guys fall and get up so fast? Amazes me. So freaking limber! Hmmm…never mind.

So have you read a book or series that interested you in a sport? Or into checking out something you never thought about? I bet a lot of people got into BDSM after reading 50 Shades.

I have to add: GOOD WRITERS AND GOOD STORIES INFLUENCE PEOPLE.

Full Heat, Hidden Heat, Men, My Books, Naked Heat, Reading, Writing

A Growth of a Series

December 30, 2015December 31, 2015by Carla Swafford

First, I love reading books with bad boy heroes. Hell, I married one. If you’ve ever read my Circle series, you’ll know how much I love writing about dangerous, ill-tempered (HA!) men.

When I began writing the Brothers of Mayhem series, I had already read a couple MC (romance/fiction) books and watched all of the Sons of Anarchy. Click here to read my post about researching the series.

So I thought readers of MC books would be interested to know that the first book (HIDDEN HEAT) of the Brothers of Mayhem is not the typical MC story. The majority of the bikers in that story are not good guys. But you will see a shift in book two (FULL HEAT – Storm’s story). It has a mixture of good and bad. New blood.

By book three (NAKED HEAT – Wolf’s story) you’ll see more of the brotherhood that you come to expect in a MC romance. And in the fourth book (RAW HEAT – Cutter’s story), the club heals and the brotherhood tightens.

It’s like this, throughout the series, each book can be read separately as stand-alones, but like the romance in each story, the club has a path to take with all of the ups and downs. The growth of the club as an unit will ensure its survival. In the end, it will have the right guy in place and everyone will be happy. *sniff* I do love for my people to have a happy ending.

And you could say each story has something for everyone, from the unique MC story to the hard core.

Men, Reading, Thoughts, Writing

What Model Of Alpha Do You Want?

December 26, 2015December 25, 2015by Carla Swafford

Reviews are a double edge sword. Authors want and need them to get the word out about their books, but reviews with low ratings and pure hate for a book are not helpful in my opinion. The reason I say it that way is that I had a well-known blogger tell me even horrible reviews can help sell a book. You know, everyone wanting to see if a book is really as terrible as everyone is saying. Heaven forbid, if that ever happens to me. I’m all for the positive hook.

Anyway, reviews per se is not what this post is about.

Occasionally, I read reviews from some of my favorite authors. Why you ask? Whenever I’m feeling down about my writing (what the fuck am I doing?) and need to see even my favorite NYT bestselling authors have a handful of disparagers among their hundreds of five star reviews. Yesterday, I was looking at an author whose publisher had released her backlist in ebook. So thrilling because now I can get copies for my iPad and the paperbacks can stay on my shelves in good condition.

On one hand, I was surprised by the many one stars (and anger) for books I love of hers. As I read the reviews, the main theme appeared to be the way the heroes treated the heroines.

See, from 1970s to 1990s, it had been popular for the heroes to be what I call supreme alphas. It started with the bodice rippers (literally, and by the way, I freaking hate that term for current day romance in general). Yes. Historical romances were queen in the beginning and the heroes thought nothing of ripping the bodice off the heroines. It was so different from what women had been reading before then. I can get into the dynamics of the sexual revolution and birth control and woman finding out they loved sex when there was little fear of pregnancy (only 2% to 9% fear as pills are 91% to 98% effective), but that is still not what this post is about.

In my dear favorite author’s earlier books, the heroes bossed and took over the heroines’ lives as if the women had no sense at all. At the time, and to a point nowadays, I love reading books with those types of heroes. But from what I’ve read in other articles, reviews and in general conversations with twenty- to thirty-something readers, they do not want a hero to act that way. In real life, I wouldn’t either, but, folks, this is fantasy. Anyway, onward and upward…

I thought that was interesting considering how many readers love kinky doms (BDSM), demanding billionaires, and dangerous bikers (MCs). So I compared the differences and realized in most cases, the older romances with dominating males, the heroes came across as cold and unfeeling at least until the end. While the new wave alphas show tenderness and often sweet talk their heroines, they are the same type of heroes, but they have smoother edges.

Both have pluses and minuses. I have found that sometimes when I’m reading a new author’s male point of view, the guys sound a little girlish. More of how the author wished a male would be. From what I know of most men, they are straightforward in speech and action and rarely think about how so-and-so feels about something. They believe they do what must be done and not worry overmuch about it. They have gut feelings and realizations. Not all of that touchy, feely, (I’m not talking about sex) I-have-to-talk-it-out stuff. Of course, there are the exceptions, but they are usually the villains. HA!

Oh, if you’re reading an old romance, be sure to keep all of this mind. Hopefully the publisher (or author, if self-published) will show the original published date. It would be best in the end. Fewer rants by readers. Geez!

Men, My Books

Envisioning the Hero

April 26, 2015April 26, 2015by Carla Swafford

Thought I would share what I envision the hero would look like in my current book scheduled to be released February 2016.

The first two (or is that technically four) are Adam Levine. The first one (or two) look like a romance book cover, doesn’t it? For my hero, think Adam but with a little more meat on the bone. HA!

Lucky girl in the second batch of poses.

While searching around for pictures of Adam, I came across the second one. He’s a Brazilian model. Not bad at all, heh? Interesting pose on a motorcycle.

Circle of Defiance, Giveaways, Men, My Books, Writing

What We Imagine

February 25, 2015February 27, 2015by Carla Swafford

Dwayne Johnson The other day, my oldest daughter was saying how she loved seeing what people imagine certain book heroes look like. So I thought I would share what I think Jack in CIRCLE OF DEFIANCE looks like. A combination of the two fellows in the top two pictures. Jack keeps his head shaved (his story will reveal why he does it), has piercings, tattoos, and isn’t classically vinside handsome though women would call him good-looking in that manly way. He’s a lady’s man. So he loves women. Not for just sex. He actually has a female best friend. Though his younger brother, Rex, hates him, he will do anything to keep him happy. Jack even tricked Rex into marrying the woman his brother had loved for years. Because of the decisions Jack has made, he’s a lonely, lonely man. Thankfully, Katerina comes along and cheers him up. LOL! If you could call fearing for his life as cheering up. Don’t forget CIRCLE OF DEFIANCE is on sale now at Amazon! Plus Amazon has CIRCLE OF DESIRE and CIRCLE OF DANGER on sale for $1.99. Not sure how long that will last. For those who have been following my blog, I’ve mentioned a couple times I’m working on a new series. This hero let’s his hair grow, unlike Jack, and wears it in a hairstyle that has become popular again. It was the thing to wear in the 1930s to 1940s. I wasn’t alive then, but I’ve seen the movies (reruns 100 times over) from back in the day. I so hope fedoras come back in style too. Here are a couple pictures of the hairstyle I’m talking about. So sexy if done right. Plus the new hero leaves some scruff on his face. By the way, CONGRATULATIONS to Melissa Ruiz! She won the 2nd set of books, bag, Hello Kitty, $10 Amazon Gift Card and tee shirt! Melissa, be sure to answer my email. Thank you!

[Update: Melissa is excited to have won. Her package is being mailed out Saturday. Congrats again!]

Men, Movies, My Books, Reading, Thoughts, Writing

Three Types of Alphas

January 27, 2015February 8, 2015by Carla Swafford

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000039_00009] — Release date 2/24/2015 Amazon.

Over the years, I’ve heard debates on the plus and minuses of Alpha and beta heroes. Personally, I prefer Alpha heroes, and strangely, as unchanging Alphas appear to be, they have been changing with the times. Maybe it has to do with women liberation and the younger generation.

Geez, that last part makes me sound so old.

I guess it’s because I don’t have a problem with a man being a man. For a man to beat his chest and open my doors never bothered me. But at the same time, why are women still referred to as Mrs. in the business world or if I’m purchasing something? Hell, I’m proud of being married to my hubby (love him dearly), but what does my marital status have to do with my work? Men are Mr., no matter if they’re married or not. Never understood it. Equal rights and all.

Sorry, got off track. Back to the three type of Alphas.

1. The Tarzan Alpha. Loved watching Tarzan movies on TV when I was a kid (they were re-runs of re-runs), but as an adult in the present PC environment, the movies from the 1930s for sure show a hero who’s not really very nice to Jane. Even in one film, he tears her clothes off. Of course, he’s just curious about the clothing. Yeah. Right. It was the same movie (Tarzan and His Mate) along with a few others that helped bring about censoring movies in Hollywood during that period. The Johnny Weissmuller ones were my favorites. By the way, Tarzan’s English name was John Clayton. Thought I would throw that in.

Now on to this Alpha. At times, he can come across as being not the smartest cookie in the pack. Maybe because he’s raised by apes/wolves/lions/etc., from a different planet or time. Isn’t that a great excuse to do whatever he wants? But when he’s in his environment, watch out! You’ll look a fool if you underestimate him.

The other side of the same coin, this Alpha can also be super-smart, and you’ll know it from the start. Often he’s that way because he’s lived a horrible life. Cruel biological or foster parents/guardians, bad choices or friends, etc. So he grows up thinking women are nothing but sex toys for him to play with. That is, when he’s not busy taking care of business. He often plays a brutish hero, steam rolling over the heroine, forcing her to do what he says. “For her own good.” Hey, I enjoy reading this type, but no way do I want to be around one in real life.

What authors write this type? Lori Leigh, Anne Stuart (she has some scary, delicious ones), Beth Kery, and Nalini Singh (some I’m told).

2. The James Bond Alpha. This is the category where most Alphas fall. They’re self-sufficient and don’t believe they need a woman until they meet The One. Sometimes they have a hard time recognizing her. That’s the part we find so much fun: watching him come to terms, that he can’t live without her. Oh, yeah. The mighty falls hard.

And don’t be hating my favorite James Bond. Even today, wrinkles and all, Pierce Brosnan is so sexy.

The authors for his type? Linda Howard, Maisey Yates, Debra Webb, Anne Stuart (her Ice series has this, mixed with the Tarzan) and Carla Swafford (of course, I had to add mine).

3. The Jamie Alpha. Yes. Simply stated. If you don’t know who I’m talking about, you haven’t read, watched or listened (audio) to any of the OUTLANDER books. The author has created a new alpha. He’s strong, gentle, and reasonable. Expects his woman to be as honest as he is and to stand by her man. But he’s willing to sacrifice his life or even give her up to protect her.

The authors with this type of Alpha? Diana Gabaldon (duh!), Betty Bolte, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Victoria Dahl (some), and my next book will have a lot of this Alpha in the hero. The book is due out February 2016 and should be titled BURNOUT [update: title has been changed. More about that later.] More info to come in the next few months.

As you noticed, the authors I mentioned have a mixture of Alpha heroes (including mine), but they appear to gravitate to the types I mentioned.

Something I noticed when I finished writing this post, all three Alphas are named after characters from the U.K., and all have “J” names. Funny. HA!

Anyway, comment and let me know what authors you believe match up to the Alphas above. Chances are I’ll love to read them.

Men, Odd Observation

Love Hearing Another Woman’s Opinion

October 14, 2014by Carla Swafford2 Comments

Maybe I’m still a teenager at heart, but I love coming across an article talking about sex Surprised Woman positions and it not being porn. This simple article talks about having the woman on top. Good advice in my opinion.

The best part about the article is that the guy’s hot. How often in pictures with articles or commercials on TV, the woman is cute and the dude looks like Woody Allen? No matter how many women he’s slept with, no one can call him sexy or handsome without lying or/and being related to him.

So check this out.

Men, Odd Observation

The Ties That Bind

May 24, 2014May 25, 2014by Carla Swafford

I don’t know if you figured it out yet, but I’m at times a little off beat. A couple weeks ago, I came across this picture. No face or body, but it goes to prove how sexy a man’s hands and forearms can be. So freaking masculine. There is something sexy about seeing a lean, well-muscled man in cuffs. All that strength under control

A man’s fingers can tell you a lot. Calluses say the man works with his hands, digging ditches or carving wood. Long fingers are usually associated with surgeons and pianists; thick fingers with brawn and the more masculine pursuits.

I’ve never been wild about rings on men, except maybe a wedding band, but whoa! The rings in the picture say to me he’s a bit of a rebel. A biker. Maybe even a musician.

Yep. Not all men need to be military alpha males. Tied up, they become pure sexual beings. Yum.

Yes. You’re right. I have a vivid imagination.

Men, Odd Observation

Finding Romance In Strange Places

May 3, 2014May 3, 2014by Carla Swafford

I get so tickled when I’m watching a TV show or movie and realize parts of it have many of the same elements of the books I read (romance). Especially if the show is written by a male.

Yes. I’m a bit of a female chauvinist. Sure males can write romance, but you have to remember for centuries when they did they almost always killed off one or more of the protagonists in the end, e.g., Romeo & Juliet.

Anyway, I was watching a movie that I had never expected to see romance in it. Plus it had a wonderful lesson to share. The movie? Don Jon. Yes. You read that right. The movie with Joseph Gordon-Levitt — oh, my he has grown up. He plays a young fellow who learns there’s more to fucking than the physical act.

See, Jon likes to hang with his boys, takes good care of his car, home and body, and is a player. But he loves porn more than anything. To him, porn sex is more real and satisfying than the genuine thing.

Now for the spoilers. But first, if you’re thinking of watching the movie and you should, you might want to come back and read this later or you can read on and see if you agree with what I say here.

It’s not the great movie of the decade, but it’s entertaining, and did I mention Joseph Gordon-Levitt has grown up? Yum! download

At first I thought, oh, no, it’s going to be about sex and not good sex, and it won’t make any sense, and I will be pissed when the credits roll in. But as the movie went along, you can see there is so much going on. He’s open to change. Maybe inside he realizes he’s not happy with his life.

About halfway through the movie, he loses his girlfriend because he lies to her about watching porn. But it is an older woman who teaches him the best lessons.

One, that porn is not real. They’re actors. All this time, he’d been looking for a woman who would act like them. He wanted all the pleasure but wasn’t willing to do the same for his partner. The older woman asked him, had he ever jerked off without watching porn? He hadn’t. That gets him to thinking. So he stops watching it. Suddenly, he has more time to do other things. He calms down and starts to enjoy life more.

And then the woman tells him one really big truth. For him to enjoy sex, he needs to make love to his partner, he needs to lose himself in her.

Though the movie doesn’t end with him confessing everlasting love to the older woman, he understands by making sure his partner is enjoying sex, his pleasure will be so much more satisfying. In turn, his partner will lose herself in him. That good sex is a shared experience. Just as much as a mental thing as it is physical.

I was totally surprised by the message of the movie. A total unlikely premise saying what so many romance novels tell us.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt wrote the screenplay. The fellow does have layers. Talented.

If you decide to watch it, don’t go in expecting anything. Just sit back and be entertained. It’s funny in some parts. Tony Danza (Who’s The Boss) plays his dad and is a hoot. His mom is played by Glenne Headly (I remember her from Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, but others may from Monk). But as you can imagine, you certainly shouldn’t have children in the room while you watch it. And there’s a lot more to it than what I mentioned here.

Men, My Books

Strangers In The Night

April 6, 2014April 7, 2014by Carla Swafford

If you had the chance to be in the car alone for about twenty or thirty minutes with one of your all-time favorite authors, who would it be?

I had that opportunity in 2009. My writers group has a romance readers luncheon every first Saturday in November. That year it was Anne Stuart. Oh, my GOD! I was so excited. She and Linda Howard are two authors that I want to be compared to whenever someone reads my romantic suspense.

Anne was flying into the Birmingham airport and I volunteered (yeah, like I would let anyone else do that) to pick her up. I was so tickled, I even took off a half day from work. Who can concentrate when they’re picking up a rock star?

So there I was waiting for the time, unable to eat or read. If I can’t do two of my four favorite things, I’m really wound up. (By the way, if you’re curious, the other two are writing and sex, not necessarily in that order.)

The time finally arrives and I’m standing near the concourse exit. I’m holding a sign with her pen name on it, so she’ll know who’s picking her up. A large crowd comes through, warning me that the flight had deplaned. No Anne. Huh? Did I miss her in the crowd? Had she changed so much from Washington DC when I met her for the first time that I overlooked her? OMG! THE HORROR!

Then I crane my neck to look down the long hallway, and I see a man pushing a woman in a wheelchair. ANNE! (I read somewhere she has a bad knee.) Then I flip my sign, and she bursts out laughing (love her laugh). What did it say?

I had a feeling she would appreciate the humor, so I said, “And I don’t own a sledgehammer.” She roared with laughter and said, “I sure hope not.”

On the way to the hotel, I had around twenty minutes to gush all over her about how much I loved her books, telling her my favorites, and then I asked about what she was writing. And somewhere along the way, she asked about my writing. Before I knew it, we were at the hotel. Talk about loving every minute with her, it was fabulous. A time I’ll never forget.

Be sure to put her books on your list to read. In fact, the last couple weeks she has been celebrating forty years (amazing!) in the business and been giving away downloads at Amazon and sometimes B&N. Click here for her blog. Click here for her Facebook page. But be aware, most of Anne’s heroes are tough and almost scary alpha. Her Ice series are some of the best and most unique romantic suspense I’ve ever read. What makes them unique?

The hero doesn’t have issues with being a badass. They make hard decisions and don’t sit around mourning the results. They are at times rough and maybe even a little cruel to the heroines. The heroes are tough men and expect the women they are fascinated by (and they are always drawn to the heroines despite what is best for him) to understand where they’re coming from. Since this is fiction, I love these heroes. In real life, hell no. They would scare the shit out of me.

And her women are strong. Some can kick butt as well as the guys, but those who can’t (kick butt), know how to stand up them. Oh, yeah, with great results.

If any of that sounds familiar, it’s because I’m such a fan that my heroes and heroines are a little like hers. I’m not saying I’m the caliber of writer that she is. But I will tell you that one of my reviews did compare my first book to Anne’s Ice series. I was thrilled.

Maybe soon I’ll tell you how I met Sherrilyn Kenyon and Linda Howard.

Men, Writing

Heroes With Mommy Issues

March 29, 2014by Carla Swafford

One of my old favorite romances is a medieval that the hero was a bastard (figuratively and literally). His distrust of women stemmed from his mother’s abandonment when he was a child. That theme ran through many romances back in the seventies and eighties, probably for centuries before that too. Nowadays we see less of that (the bastard resenting the mother who had them out of wedlock), but we still see it in other forms.

The hero whose wife or mother cheated on him or his father or the wife that didn’t want children or did want children when he didn’t. Or the hero with a step-father he hates and the mother he resents because she married the man. You get the idea. The list does go on.

It’s really a shame that moms get such a bum wrap. Being a mom, I can tell you that most of us try not to make mistakes but we all do.

But moms (and dads) are so important to our lives and using them as the deeply rooted reason for the hero’s (or heroine’s) actions could be considered an easy out for some, but really that’s right on track. Our parents have a tremendous impact on how we react to stress and challenges, and how we deal with and love others.

One thing about writing, the author almost has to be a psychologist.

Circle of Danger, Circle of Deception, Circle of Desire, Men, My Books, Writing

Hero Angst of The Circle Books

February 21, 2014February 20, 2017by Carla Swafford2 Comments

Beware – some spoilers mixed in.

Who doesn’t love a hero with a problem? It could be the trouble-making heroine he’s fallen in love with or it could be the garbage he brought to the story from years before. Sherrilyn Kenyon is great at making the hero suffer as a kid and young adult. I’m sure there are other authors who do the same. Personally, I believe I pick on the heroine more than the hero, but I thought I would go over the angst that came out of my stories for the men.

CIRCLE OF DESIRE

In his twenties, Collin Ryker was the lead operative of the internal group of deadly mercenaries called the OS (Onyx Scepter), the heart of The Circle. When he realized his guardian, Theo, the head of the organization his father built, was insane, he convinced most of the operatives in the OS to follow him and split off from The Circle. The decision had been a hard one as when his parents had died in a car bomb, Theo had been there for him.

He’d lost his whole family when that car exploded and had to deal with survivor’s guilt. He worked at being like the father he admired by being emotionless and cold in his decision making. To him, that was a sign of a great leader. But when it came to Olivia, he loved fighting with her. They argue and actually try to kick each other’s butts, not abusively, as they love testing each other. The end results brought about some great love scenes.

I have to say he’s the only hero of The Circle series who has the least angst.

CIRCLE OF DANGER

Arthur Ryker is the leader of The Circle, and mercy, he has some big time angst. Let’s start with the scar on the side of face and body, and the blind eye. They are reminders from when his life fell apart. He’d been near the car that exploded with his mother and father inside. He’d tried to save them.

Then there is the psycho old leader, Theo. He blackmailed a teenager Ryker, promising to not rape a young girl if he obeyed him in all things, including a despicable act that Ryker had thought to never experience again. He has to live with his decisions.

CIRCLE OF DECEPTION

Finally, Rex Drago’s angst has nothing to do with Theo. His is actually tied in with his height. You say, height? Yeah. His dad had the short man syndrome and resented a son who was taller than him by the time he reached high school. Even in elementary, he was taller than the other kids and adults treated him as if he was mentally handicapped. A child of that height should be older and smarter they thought.

He feels he’s not smart enough to be the second in command of The Circle.

Oh, and then there is the relationship between him and his bad ass brother, Jack. He tries to love his older brother, but with too much “water under the bridge,” it may be too late.

Side note about the series:

If you noticed in The Circle series, there is a thin string of the King Arthur legend references. The heaviest are in the first book. Psycho Theo dresses up like a knight, and he believes a sword proves he deserves to be a leader (feeling guilty much?). Of course, The Circle is in reference to the table that all the knights sat around. Last, but not least, Ryker’s first name in CIRCLE OF DANGER. Arthur.

There’s another reference to King Arthur’s legend in the books? Do you know what it is? I’ll give you a hint. It’s a name.

Men, Odd Observation

Watching The Chronicles of Riddick AGAIN

October 5, 2013October 4, 2013by Carla Swafford

I have The Chronicles of RIddick on DVD, but if I see it come on a TV station, I can’t resist. Love that movie. Two hunks I love to watch move, hear them talk, and see them kick ass. Vin Diesel and Karl Urban. But I have to say Karl is my favorite in the movie. Something about armor and that dangerous hair cut. What can I say? I have a kinky side. Like you didn’t know. Ha!