Right now, over 200 authors are conducting a massive bloghop: Hop Against Homophobia. All the details are here. Each author is posting a blog–comments left at that blog place you in the running to win prizes–but that’s not what it is really about. It’s about standing up against blatant homophobia, be it in your state assembly, the local schoolyard, against someone you love, or someone you’ve never met.

It’s about respecting the civil rights of a group of people because it is the right thing to do. No, I don’t have to be a homosexual to believe in the rights of same-sex couples to marry. I don’t have to be a lesbian to believe that people should not be discriminated against because of their sexual orientation, or that media celebrities should be condemned for calling on the death of all homosexuals. (This allegation has since been denied)

Civil rights for one minority affects the civil rights of ALL minorities. Don’t believe me? Look at the direction the GOP is taking the election this year. They can’t win on the terror platform. They can’t win on the economic platform. So they are making this election about social issues. Abstinence. Access to birth control and sex education. Benefits to single mothers. Financial aid to college students. Abortion. And gay rights.

They are taking the Us against Them battle into the far right territory, where their staunch electoral base still lies. The battle for your civil rights isn’t something that is fought for and won, game over, you have the title. The war on civil rights is ongoing daily, with the people who hold the most power doing everything in their power to erode the rights of others. Why? That’s how they *stay* in power.

So don’t think for an instant, this doesn’t apply to you because you aren’t a homosexual. It does. It applies to every thinking, compassionate person in this country who believes that bullying is wrong, and that hate crimes should be tried as such, and that women deserve equal pay for equal work, and that if you love someone, you have the right to marry them, to sit beside them when they are hospitalized, to make decisions concerning their care when they cannot.

I was at the barn yesterday morning when a country music song came on over the radio, touting the freedoms of living in America, and how this would always be the case.

Um, no. Those freedoms are up for grabs each and every day, and if you aren’t paying attention, *your* civil rights could be the next to go.

I want to tell the GOP: Back to the Future called. They want their DeLorean back. Because we will not go quietly back into the 1950s at the whim of politicians looking for re-election. Did you know that Congress has its own health insurance plan? Yup. That’s right. A pension plan too. Funny how you don’t hear about that when they are making decisions regarding *your* health and pension plans.

Why do I bring politics into it? Because it is a divisive lightening rod for civil rights. I guarantee you the average politician doesn’t give a rat’s ass about homophobia, except as a means to whip up the electorate into a frothy rage.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking it doesn’t apply to you. It does. Because when the civil rights of one person is trampled, the stampede can occur with us all.  Right now in Iran, they are putting to death homosexuals.  No, that is not happening here in the US, not yet.  But there are people who think this should be done.

Anyone who leaves a comment on this blog is in the running to select one of my stories from my backlist.  Show your support!

I can’t tell you how excited I am to be a quest on the Jessewave review site this week! Unlike the standard interview, where I am provided a list of question and I answer them in advance, you, the reader, get to ask me whatever you want!

Anyone leaving a comment or question will be in the running to win a story from my backlist–your choice! So do come out and fire your questions at me! I won’t promise to tell you the truth, but I *will* promise it will be entertaining.

Stay tuned, as I will be adding the actual link when the profile goes live on Wed 5/16/12!

Straight from Dreamspinner Press:

Dreamspinner Press turns five this month, and with it comes a huge, month-long celebration that includes sales, giveaways, prizes, and more!

Over the course of the month, all our our titles will be discounted according to how long the author has been with us.

May 1-5, we will offer a 40% discount off all books (including in-stock paperbacks) by authors who signed with us during our first year of business: Rhianne Aile, Eric Arvin, Connie Bailey, Alix Bekins, Nicki Bennett, Giselle Ellis, Catt Ford, Shay Kincaid, Marguerite Labbe, Clare London, Dar Mavison, Anais Morten, Chrissy Munder, Zahra Owens, D.G. Parker, Abigail Roux, John Simpson, Fae Sutherland, Ariel Tachna, Madeleine Urban.

May 6-12, we will offer a 35% discount off all books (including in-stock paperbacks)by authors who signed with us during our second year of business. Watch the web site for the list.

May 13-19, we will offer a 30% discount off all books (including in-stock paperbacks)by authors who signed with us during our third year of business. Watch the web site for the list.

May 20-26, we will offer a 25% discount off all books (including in-stock paperbacks)by authors who signed with us during our fourth year of business. Watch the web site for the list.

May 27-31, we will offer a 20% discount off all books (including in-stock paperbacks)by authors who signed with us during our fifth year of business. Watch the web site for the list.

In addition, we have three scheduled giveaways for the month!

One lucky participant in our Time Is Eternity Daily Dose chat at the Literary Nymphs Yahoo! Group on May 5 will win a Kindle Fire!

One lucky participant in Jeremy Pack’s Meet the Author at Dreamspinner Press’s Facebook page on May 19 will win all the eBooks on his or her wishlist!

One lucky customer on our web site during the month of May will win an iPad! Each purchase from midnight EST May 1 to midnight EST May 31 constitutes an entry.

We’ll also be doing special flash sales, so keep an eye on the web site for unannounced excitement!

Before Crying for the Moon had a publisher, I wrote a free epilogue to the story for the Goodreads M/M Romance anthology Stuff My Stocking. Check it out here on my blog–but be warned, it includes major spoilers for CFTM, so you should probably read that first!

A Walk on the Wild Side by Sarah Madison

One of my good friends took pity on my woeful graphic skills and created a lovely new banner for me. I love it! Do tell me what you think of the new look.

Come join me as I make the rounds on this blog hop!

Come join Naughty Nights Press (NNP) to celebrate our FIRST YEAR anniversary June 29th through July 1st, 2012 on the Naughty Nights Blog Hop! Everyone is welcome to participate!

Each participating blog simply must host a contest or giveaway. Please copy the code below to add our blog hop badge to your page so that readers can simply click on the badge to get back to the main list. Just add your name & the link to where you’ll be hosting your contest below!

NNP will take care of making sure our post with all the names & links is available to everyone wanting to “hop” by 00:01 am on June 29th.

We hope you all have a wickedly naughty time and thank you for joining us on this very special occasion.

NNP welcomes all bloggers to join us in celebrating our ONE YEAR Anniversary!

There will be a little of everything–you’re certain to find something that will suit your tastes!  All blog participants will be holding a giveaway contest.  I haven’t decided yet what my giveaway will be–maybe I’ll let you readers decide!

Bite the Dust is one of 32 stories that were selected to participate in the Just One Bite contest held at All Romance last year. All the stories are now available in the Just One Bite Anthologies–Bite the Dust is part of the all M/M romance volume six in the series.

Just One Bite vol. 6

Here’s a little taste–the entire anthology is available as a free download here.

The hunger was strong in him tonight. It had been simmering on the horizon for the last several days. Tonight, it rumbled through him like the first sign of thunder in a summer storm; hot and oppressive, with flashes of impatience.

It had rained earlier that evening, but the clouds had parted and the moon was a thin, sharp sickle, casting a gleam on the damp, oil-slicked pavements.

The hunger pounded in his veins as he walked along the sidewalk. It whispered in his ears; swirling around his body like the panels of his long leather coat when he moved. It was in every heartbeat; it thrummed in his groin. He wasn’t going to be satisfied with anything less than a kill this evening; that he knew. It had been too long since he’d had anything more than a casual feeding. Teeth sinking to the hilt into the throat of a living being. That frightened acceleration of a pulse beneath his lips, the taste of blood, hot and pumping from the source. Nothing less would do.

Tonight he would kill someone.

Once Mikhail made the decision, the hunger retreated, content to dog his footsteps like a wolf sensing the first weary stumble in its prey. He could contain it now, at least long enough to choose the right victim. He never hurried the selection process. Like choosing the right wine to go with dinner, it was an act to savor.

He stepped into the cold night, testing the flavors of the passersby, sizing up a likely target. Few people were out at this hour; none interested him. Almost too easy. No thrill of the chase. He crossed the street and headed down the block to the local bar. Watering holes were the same everywhere. They all made good hunting grounds.

It was closing time when he arrived, and the crowd was already milling out onto the street. People paired up, hailed taxis, or moved off toward the nearest bus stop. A single woman, dressed in a raincoat and heels, caught his attention, and he watched as she walked alone down the sidewalk in the opposite direction from everyone else. He followed in her wake. He was in no hurry. He had all night.

She strode off, brisk and purposeful. He walked at his own pace, knowing he could close the distance between them in the blink of an eye. She looked promising, and yet he didn’t crave her, he felt no strong desire for her. She would do if he found no one better.

She carried a leather portfolio and wore an expensive watch; a lawyer perhaps. What had kept her in the bar so late? Maybe she had been hoping to pick someone up. A flicker of interest stirred in him as he considered this possibility. As long as it had been since he’d slaked his thirst with a kill, it had been even longer since he’d seduced anyone. This was starting to have possibilities.

Only she turned abruptly and mounted a flight of stairs to an old brownstone, just as someone was coming out of the building. The man in a running suit held the door for her and she went in, the door swinging shut behind her. The jogger came down the stairs and started his run, not too fast. A pace he could easily sustain on the wet sidewalk. Mikhail switched his intent from the woman to the jogger. He could hear the thud of the runner’s heart, actively simulating fear, and it attracted him. Still, he took his time. He could catch up whenever he wanted. For all intents and purposes, he was just a lone walker, headed home after a night on the town. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his coat and stayed within the shadows of the buildings as he walked.

What happens next was so interesting to me, that these characters, created for a story less than 3 K in length, have made me want to know more.  You’ll be seeing more of Mikhail in the future, trust me!