"I'd like to thank the Academy......."

So it seems both Soren Ambrose and Spring Flower almost simultaneously decided I was worthy of recognition, and have both awarded me this:

I won't say I'm speechless -- it takes a hell of a lot to shock me THAT much -- but I will say that I'm astonished and delighted. Especially during a time when I've been so damned busy that I can really only manage the FFF challenge entry and FFF post on Friday. They both said some lovely things about me and I'm glad my stuff here is inspiring.

Now, then, this award evidently comes with a few short strings attached:

-- Post the award on my journal somewhere. Okay, done that much.

-- Post a video of yourself playing your favorite instrument, a picture of a pet or a long post about your favorite book. Well, I've no pets, and I don't play any instruments (wait, does the skin flute count?) so those are out. Look for an entry on one of my favorite books soon.

-- Choose some more people you think deserve the award!

Okay. Damn near everyone on my watchlist deserves the award, and in the past I've even written mini-reviews for several of them. The two who awarded ME, in fact, would be worth listing here if it weren't for the fact that they've already been awarded themselves. Here are three I haven't mentioned yet:

Scarlett, over at Ms. Scarlett's Letters:  Scarlett is the very definition of a hot soccer mom, even if she doesn't have any kids. (Go look if you don't believe me; she's posted several hot HNT photos of her and a soccer ball.) Scarlett is not only beautiful and sensual, though, she's also strong-willed, tempestuous and full of a zest for life no matter what it throws in her path. I admire her greatly, though she probably has no idea.

Kimberly, over at Your Errant Wife:  Kimberly organizes and hosts a monthly Group Post which I've contributed to several times. More than that, though, she has a talent for turning a phrase and is very good at getting your attention with the hot tales she posts. Her husband must have his hands full with her. Lucky bastard. :)

And, last but not least, the aptly-named Curvaceous Dee. Dee is one of the most universally friendly people I've met in just about any online situation. I don't think I've ever seen her have a single bad word to say about anyone. Her self-descriptor sums her up better than I ever could: "Curvaceous, vivacious, tenacious, bodacious. That's me! I'm also fat, poly, pansexual, civilly unioned, kinky, kiwi, and happy."

Go check these fine people out! And thanks, Soren and Spring Flower, for thinking so highly of me.

-- PB

You've got my attention, folks -- more hot writers to read

It's time for another installment of "Go Read These People, Dammit", wherein I tell you about the lovely sensual people that've really grabbed my attention of late. Hopefully you will go check them out if you aren't already reading them, and then will add them to your own blogroll / watchlist / regularly visited sites / whatever you call it on your own journal. Because they're all worth reading.

The first should really need no introduction -- the infamous Library Vixen. This woman is so hot that she actually had her Blogger journal shut down by complainants and had to relocate to her her own domain. Apparently some people don't care for tawdry tales of lust in the library stacks, torrid stories of a woman who's got a primal current of dark sexuality running through her soul, sensual poetry that weaves a spell around the reader, and carefully-selected erotic photographs to go with the poems and stories. She also has a remarkable talent for posting not just purely hot, sexual stories -- though she does excel at that -- but also for weaving an unexpected thread of pure emotion into her tales and recollections. Many's the time I'll be reading another hot story from her and be surprised yet again by the upwelling of melancholy, wistfulness, dark hunger, or just pure joy that her tales evoke. I've been a huge fan of Vixen ever since I first started this journal and she's overdue for her time in the spotlight. She's been much on my mind of late, so she gets top billing today. Go check her out!

Next up (and the rest of these are in no particular order), we have a relative newcomer, Cheeky Minx and her entertaingly-titled journal "Love Hate Sex Cake". (Man, what would a cake like that taste like, I wonder?) This Aussie minx is fond of posting little mini-vignettes, tiny scenarios arrayed around a theme, a sensation, a quick encounter, a phrase, a mental image. It would be very easy to dismiss this sort of thing as the scribblings of a writer who doesn't have the talent for anything longer but that's definitely not the case. Rather, her brief tales whet the appetite for more. You want to see more, hear more, feel more beyond what she already has you feeling. She has a unique turn of phrase and a curiously effortless style that makes for some very smooth reading, and the little scenes she scribes are always vivid and evocative. And her avatar picture is tantalizingly sultry. :)

Next, we have a journal that's relatively new just to me, but has been around much longer than I. A concerted effort by two people who're very much head over heels for each other, Frances and Daniel's "29 Pearls in Your Kiss" is the ongoing story of two people that are hopelessly in love with each other but have a lot of obstacles to overcome. For example, both of them being married but not to each other. "Oh, another infidelity journal," you might sigh, but there's just something about these two that's captured my interest. A touching sweetness, a warmth of expression, a curiously intense combination of innocence and sensual heat. They post tales of their encounters, tell us how they deal with the obstacles in their paths, share private photos and text messages, and somehow manage to be open and vulnerable while still remaining strong and balanced.The two of them admit they're still trying to figure everything out. I'll be along for the ride, you can be sure of that.

And finally (but definitely not least), we have "Bringing my Sexy Back", the online home of the enchanting Duchess. The Duchess started her journal just over a year ago in an effort to recapture the sexiness in her life -- to recapture her drive, the fire and passion that she felt she'd lost. I recommend starting at the beginning of her archive, because it's absolutely fascinating to see the progression from somewhat timid explorer to the stunningly fabulous Duchess that's so evident in today's posts. Here is a woman who's made huge strides in just over a year, who posts fascinating, evocative fantasies, whose carefully-crafted tales never fail to make my head spin. Moreover, she truly is an excellent writer -- her vocabulary and phrasing are impeccable, her writing head and shoulders above many of the slice-of-life journals you may find out there. And what fascinates me still is that the Duchess persona she embodies so well is completely confident in her own sexuality, but once in a while we can still see a touching vulnerability that she chooses to share with us, an admission that she's still not sure of herself, that she's still working on being more open, more aggressive about getting what she wants. The Duchess, too, is one of the first journals I started reading when I began here, and she's also overdue for her turn in the spotlight. Go check her out as well.

-- PB

More hot and sexy writers to watch

If you're looking for something new and interesting to add to your watchlist and you aren't already reading these three fine people, why the hell not?

The first one is Fantasia Lillith, whose home is Pillow Talk. Fantasia has eschewed the "daily blog" approach for an "erotic fiction" approach; she had gotten fed up with the lack of classy, elegantly written erotica and so decided she wanted to create her own. And create she does -- well-crafted tales, full of emotion and dripping with sensuality. Tales of wonder and mystery; tales of sweet encounters; tales of fiery passion; tales of bittersweet parting; tales of dangerous liasons. Go check them out; I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

Dangerous Lilly, on her site This Could Be Dangerous... , doesn't need any extra traffic from me, I'm sure, as she's already got plenty of readers....but I have to mention her anyway. Lilly's fiction and real-life tales have a tinge of -- you guessed it -- danger about them. You're never quite sure what she's capable of or what she'll dare to do. She's not shy about her body and has provided many lovely shots of it, and details her fantasies and exploits in delightful detail. She also has a large archive to go through so there's plenty to keep you occupied once she's snared you. Recommended.

The Temptress, over at Archetype of the Temptress, is a self-described "mystical, irresistible and highly sexed temptress". Can't speak for "mystical", but I can say that the rest of that is bang on. A stunning raven-haired beauty who looks as if she'd be right at home as Bettie Page, or as the mobster's girlfriend in a crime noir, she writes about her fantasies and cravings with an achingly honest, touchingly sweet feel. It's rare to see this kind of emotion in a "sex blog" these days, but she's got it in spades. She also has an amazing capacity to go from touchingly sweet to filthy and depraved in seconds -- from zero to "come fuck me" in nothing flat. Very interesting and definitely worth reading.

Go visit these folks' journals and browse around a bit. They're fine hostesses and will be delighted to make you feel at home. Tell 'em I sent you. :)

-- PB

Library Vixen relocated!

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Two more additions to the watchlist

Wanted to talk a bit about two more sexy writers that've caught my attention recently. Both of them are smart, capable and self-confident. Both are very open and frank about exploring their sexuality and enjoying their sex lives. And both have entertaining handles.

The first is the entertaingly-named "Sex, Chocolate and Red Lipstick". Written by a lovely blonde English lass named Amy, somebody who knows the value of a finely-crafted phrase. Amy understands that intelligence and a dry wit are enormous turn-ons, at least to those of us who like brains with our beauty. And she's got plenty of brains to round out the beautiful package. Plus, she's English, how can you not love that? Brit accents are hot.

Secondly is the intriguing Coquitten, who takes her name from a portmanteau of the words "coquette" and "kitten". She does define "coquette" for those who aren't in the know, but clearly expects that her audience is going to be smart enough to already know what it means. She, like Amy, writes smart, well-crafted observations on dating and the sexual situations she gets into. Caught my attention with a post entitled "I Think I'd Rather Misbehave", which is insanely hot. Also posts lovely HNT photos.

Go check them out, won't you?

-- PB

Reviews of two writers who're new to my watchlist

Yay me -- I'm now a contributor at Spanky's new hivemind offering, "Erotic Flash Fiction". I had so much fun with the concept last Friday that I'm going to be tossing out other short offerings over at the EFF journal. Look for the first one later this afternoon.

One of the things I plan to do here is to provide mini-reviews of the other hot sites and hot writers that I discover as I wander about the erotic Internets. Today's recent discoveries are twofold, both here on Blogger. One is very recent, like my own; the other has been around since April. They're both worth reading.

The first is the very enchanting "La Damnation de Luna Mauvaise", by (you guessed it) Luna Mauvaise. It is immediately apparent when reading her entries that this is a writer of considerable talent. She has a quicksilver, effortless style, with impeccable grammar and spelling and a not-inconsiderable vocabulary. It's certainly a far cry from many of the first-grade level scribblings to be found on a lot of the "sex blogs" out there, and it's delightful. As are the stories she posts. Delicious fantasies, lazy recollections, steamy musings, poetic ramblings -- this is a journal worth reading, and she's on my watchlist now. The French language splashed here and there adds that touch of forbidden fruit -- Babelfish is never quite an accurate translation, is it? It makes you wonder what she might cry out if you were to bring her to ecstasy.....another pleasant fantasy in and of itself.

The second one is "My Own Sort of PostSecret" from the blossoming Ismene of Thebes. Ismene is a bit like myself -- posting here because she wants to explore, question, and broaden her own sexual experiences and thoughts. She has been a bit timid about opening up so far, but when she does open up, watch out -- you might get scalded from the escaping steam. I hope she gets plenty of encouragement because she's quite good at telling tales, and I look forward to seeing how she develops as she opens up.

-- PB