*Giveaway & Interview* w/Candace Blevins of Safeword Series

Ladies and gentlemen of the Smutty Lair...

If you were here yesterday, you saw my review for Davenport...

Well, I am hoping I teased you enough to want to learn more about the woman responsible for writing that book and many others...

Please put together a warm, smutty welcome for....

Ms. Candace Blevins!

My review was yesterday!

Why don't you tell us a little about yourself.... Something that we cannot Google about you, lol! Since you are a new to me author, I am hoping to bring you to the light of others! So share away!

I’m a forty-something year old mom of two young kids, I’ve been married to my soul mate for fourteen years, and I’ve been in the lifestyle more than twenty years. He’s a Dom and a sadist, which works out well since I’m a masochist, and submissive to him. We did the extreme 24/7 TPE thing for a while before kids, but these days things are pretty relaxed during the day and we only play once the kids are asleep.

Tell us a little about your book?

I wrote Safeword: Matte for myself, as I was tired (at the time) of books with all of these outside forces trying to pull couples apart. I wanted to show a relationship coming together and forming into something special without external conflicts causing problems.
I also wanted to show some of the complications in a strong woman finding someone to submit. For a woman physically strong, as well as very strong-willed, and of above average intelligence, is there any hope of her finding someone she can willingly hand her power over to?

How much emotion does it take from you to write?
Safeword: Matte was fun to write. Sure, it took some emotion, but it was all good. My most recent books, Safeword: Davenport and Safewords: Davenport and Chiffon, had me a snotty, crying mess while I wrote them... and on every editing pass, too.

What is your favorite part of the book?

The flogging scene during the thunderstorm. It’s loosely based on something that actually happened, though it was in a vacation cabin on a mountain near Gatlinburg, Tennessee, and didn’t involve the pseudo fight ahead of time. It was a magical afternoon and evening, as we watched and heard the storm coming, and then enjoyed the energy of the wind and thunder and lightning as it arrived and became part of the scene we were playing out on the screened in porch. I’m glad I was able to share parts of it through my writing.

You can only pick 3 words for your main characters..what would they be? *to describe your main characters*

To describe both of them? Strong, honest, responsible.  Hmmm, and Sexy.

Which was the easiest character to write and the hardest ~ and why?

To see my review click here

Ethan was pretty easy to write. I’ve dated someone as endowed as him (yes, men can actually be that big), and I’ve dated several guys as tall and muscular as him. I enjoyed adding the physical aspects in with the personality I gave him. Most women haven’t been carried in someone’s arms, cradled safely as they completely relax, since they were children. And men who are built like Ethan generally either use their size to scare people, or spend a good deal of effort trying to assure people they’re safe around them. Ethan uses his size to intimidate people in sanctioned fights, but in everyday situations goes out of his way to not scare people.
I don’t think I had any difficult characters to write in Safeword: Matte. My purpose while writing it was to keep the external conflicts out of it, and only show what might come up naturally as two people work towards finding balance in a power exchange.
My most difficult character of all of my books has been Dana, from the two Davenport books. She started out as me, in a story I never intended to offer to the public. While my husband was in the hospital and we weren’t sure he was going to make it, I wrote the beginnings of a story of how someone’s life might look a year and a half after she’d lost her husband. I believe time heals all wounds, so it was kind of my way of convincing myself I’d be okay, eventually, if he didn’t pull through. Once the doctors finally started talking about him eventually going home, I stopped writing on the book, and it was about a year before I returned to it. I’ve changed things enough so Dana isn’t “me”, but there are still a lot of similarities, and I’m so close to the story... it was hard.

Wow, thank you for sharing that with us. And for those of you that have not read Davenport's stories yet... Dana is a woman who is strong and knows what she wants... But also knows what it is like to lose her heart. My heart went out for her...
How many books are you shooting for in this series??

Look for review to come!

I don’t have a specific number. At this point, I have lots of ideas for stories in this series, but I don’t know how many of them I’ll actually write.

What are you currently working on?

Safeword: Quinacridone, which involves a socially backwards computer geek, a shy artist, and deep exploration of objectification.

Do you have anything due to release soon?

I’m just about finished with Safeword: Quinacridone, but don’t have a release date for it yet, as I have no idea how long the editing process is going to take on this one.

What's one thing that you enjoy about writing?

Writing allows me to share experiences not a lot of people get to (or want to) experience in real life. It allows me to explore emotions and sensations out loud, so others can be a part of it. I love creating my characters, getting to know them, and then watching them on their journey to find a relationship that works for them.

Since we're cover hussies....what was your first impression of your cover?

I loved it. Seriously, it’s Ethan. I kind of wish he didn’t have the thing on his head, but even that ended up working out, since he’s bald in part of the book and has hair in part of it.

What do you prefer, ebooks or paperbacks?

Oh, ebooks, definitely. Someone let me borrow a hardback recently, and I was so frustrated with it. It was heavy, and took two hands to wield – one to hold the book and another to turn the pages. When my eyes got tired I couldn’t make the font bigger. I couldn’t put it in a ziplock baggie and safely read in the tub with the jets going. And I had to leave the light on at night to read (normally I switch from Kindle to Droid tablet when my husband goes to sleep, so we can turn the light off). Oh, and I had to find a bookmark if something interrupted me, and it was HUGE to carry around in my purse. I hadn’t realized how spoiled I’d become with ebooks.

Is there a genre you would like to write but are a little apprehensive to try?

I will eventually dive into Urban Fantasy. It’s not so much I’m apprehensive to try it, as it is that I’ve got a few ideas but haven’t fully cemented the series in my head yet. Also, I’m still having a blast with the safeword series, and I’m not ready to explore another genre just yet.

Okay.... personal time!!!! Oh yeah, I go there... Hahah...
If you thought you were safe... Nah... Forgot it... Not a chance! We will start off slow and easy, I promise!

What is on your night stand/dresser?
A tub of pistachios, Hint pomegranate tangerine water, a few USB flash drives, my cellphone (charging), Kindle touch (charging), my daughter’s Kindle Fire (charging), my younger daughter’s Kindle Keyboard (confiscated when I caught her reading under the covers with a flashlight two and a half hours after her bedtime), and my Droid tablet (charging). My laptop is often there as well, but it’s currently in my lap.

What are you listening to you right now?
KISS FM, a Chattanooga radio station. My oldest daughter’s choice, and it’s piped throughout the house at the moment. They are currently playing, “Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”.

What are you reading right now?
Back from the Undead, by DD Barant. It came out in March, but I’m just now getting around to reading it. I love the worldbuilding in this series, and adore the smart-assed main character and her smart-assed plastic partner (animated by the life force of a t-rex, so don’t let the plastic bits fool you). The books in this series make me laugh and think. Not much sex, but that’s okay.

What is your favorite season? Holiday?
My favorite season is spring – life and rebirth and the promise of better things after the cold winter.
I’m not sure I have a favorite holiday. I enjoy parts of Christmas and don’t enjoy other parts of it. I love Thanksgiving, but used to hate the whole Friday shopping thing. Now I shop online and get great deals, so it’s not so bad anymore. My husband and I had our first vanilla date on the Fourth of July – we went hiking that day and went to an outdoors concert that night, ending in fireworks, so it’s still kind of special. He found some sweet gum balls on the ground and used them like you’d use a Wartenberg wheel to torture me during the concert. He only used it on my arms and legs, since we were in public, but it drove me crazy.

And what has been your best b-day present ever??
Umm, I’m in my mid-forties – I have no idea. The first thing that comes to mind is a road being opened. When I was young we had to travel fourteen miles of a winding two-lane road to get to town. Or school. Or the nearest store. They built a two-lane road beside it, and smoothed the hills and straightened the curves and we drove on it for a few years while they straightened and flattened the original two lanes. The official four-lane road opened for the first time on my eighteenth birthday, which I thought was pretty cool. It turned what was usually a twenty-five minute drive into a fifteen minute drive.

Hard and Quick Time! Don't think... Just answer! Okay, before we go this route, I will get us a refill on our drinks... I will be right back...

You know you do... Quickie time... Think fast....
Are you a quickie kind girl?  Quickies have their place – it’s occasionally nice to be ordered to bend over the sofa with no foreplay. It’s not my favorite, but it’s hot every once in a while.

Dark or Milk Chocolate?  Milk Chocolate. Yummmm.

Whipped or Melted?  Whipped cream. Melted butter. Hmmm, whipping me tends to make me melt inside, does that count?

Straight up or with a twist - sex?  With a twist, of course.

What's ur fave drink - in a glass or on him?  Alcoholic drink? Jack and Coke. In a glass, of course. He’s kind of a clean freak – it’s okay to put messy stuff on me, but not on him.

Spank or Flogger?  My preference is flogger, but I love both.

Junk or Health Food?  I’m a vegetarian, and most of the time I eat healthy stuff. I’m not opposed to chocolate flavored protein bars, though. I love the Luna Protein Mint Chocolate bars. Yummmm. I generally only do junk food at birthdays and holidays, where I go all out, while I’m at it.

Ties or Chains? I have to choose? Ties in our bedroom, because they are the most practical and they don’t damage anything. In a club, I love the sound and feel of chains, though.

Leather or Lace?  Leather.

Soft or Hard... Bed, where was your mind?  Soft. Very soft, with a pillowtop. I have funny stories of my kids’ reactions to the beds in China, where it’s believed a soft bed makes you soft. If you ever travel to China, ask for a western bed. We tend to travel off the beaten path, where there are no western beds available, though. On our last trip, one of our kids chose to sleep on top of DH the whole time – LOL.

Control or Be Controlled? I’m in control at work, we’re mostly partners where it comes to raising our kids, and I’m controlled in just about everything else.

Hot Wax or Whip Cream? Hot wax. That’s an easy one.

Vampire or Werewolf? Depends on the author. I prefer the wolves in the Twilight world, the vampires in Jeaniene Frost’s world, the shifters in Ilona Andrews’ world.

Twitter and/or Facebook? Yes, both.  http://www.facebook.com/candacesblevins and

Click to see review!!!

https://twitter.com/CandaceBlevins

Pinterest or not? I’ve put images and videos up of some of the places in my books.
https://pinterest.com/candacesblevins/favorite-places/
Want to see the pedestrian bridge I talk about, spanning the Tennessee River? Want to see Ravens Point? Foster Falls? It’s there.


Thanks for having me today, and for the fun questions!
It’s been fun :)


*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*

*Now it is giveaway time....*

Candace is giving away - Winner Choice of either Safeword: Davenport or Safeword: Davenport & Chiffon

Check out the form... It has all the details on it!! Good luck!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And remember... Always keep it Dirty, Smutty & Hussy!