Guest Post and Giveaway: The Devil Will Do by Heidi Cullinan

The Novel Approach welcomes author Heidi Cullinan on The Devil Will Do blog tour. Enjoy Heidi’s guest post, then be sure to check out the giveaways and the ways you can enter to win below.

Good luck!

Written For You: Dedicating A Story

Though all my stories are dedicated to someone, some are more “for” the people they’re dedicated to than others. Sometimes I dedicate books and share them to those I dedicated them to, and sometimes I don’t. Sometimes the dedication is general. Sometimes it’s very, very personal.

I wrote The Devil Will Do to someone specific. I wanted to work in some of his favorite kinks and tropes for sure, but I remember I kept thinking how much I wanted it to be for him. That focus altered everything. The tone, the trajectory. I always knew exactly what the hook was, but thinking I’m writing this for Jason added a whole new element.

This was the only book I’ve ever written for a reader specifically. Since then Jason has become a good friend, and in the weird twists fate offers, he was the editor for this reissue. But at the time, we’d just started to get to know one another. I wonder if that’s why I wasn’t simply saying, “I thought of you while I wrote this” as I usually do, but rather deliberately trying to delight him as a reader.

Who a story is completely for in the end is a rather murky assignment. It’s for everyone who finds something of value in it, and they get to find whatever value speaks to them. There is something that buzzes one in the heart, though, to find you’re mentioned in the opening of a book. When friends and fellow authors have given me a nod in the acknowledgments, yes, it moves me. Every time.

I’ve had one thing written for me that wasn’t a letter to me. It’s from my daughter, written when she was quite young. It was, as it happens, pretty much a replica of something I wrote for her. She’s battled anxiety since she was born, and I got in the habit of penning her encouraging notes in her lunch, sticking them under her door, leaving them on her pillow. One particularly moved her, and she posted it on my desk. I hung it above my desk and eventually framed it. Here’s a picture of it, complete with a photo of her from about that age which as it happened was on the bookshelf where I tried to take the picture.

I can’t write stories for everyone, much as I might like to. I do enjoy writing off the beaten path, trying to give voice to people who might not often find themselves in stories. And yes, I do love dedicating stories to people I love.

Has anyone ever written anything for you? If not, I hope they do soon.

Blurb: In a land unforgiving of indulgent, dangerous sex, merchantman Eryn does his best to keep his desires in the dark…until the plight of a beautiful prince leads him out of the shadows and into adventures both sensual and terrible.

Capture, curse, and torture litter Eryn’s road to true love, along with carnal delights beyond his most wicked imaginings. His strengths and limitations are exposed—and the hard truth, that nothing holds him back more than the monster of self-loathing in his heart. Prince Wyn might be everything he’s dreamed of in a man—and master—but before Eryn can accept the exquisitely wicked affections of his one true love, he must first save himself…from himself.

This novella was originally published under the title Sweet Son and has been significantly revised.

The Devil Will Do is available for purchase at Wilde City Press | Amazon US (Kindle) (Paperback) | Amazon UK (Kindle) (Paperback) | Barnes & Noble

About Heidi: Heidi Cullinan has always loved a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. She enjoys writing across many genres but loves above all to write happy, romantic endings for LGBT characters because there just aren’t enough of those stories out there. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading, knitting, listening to music, and watching television with her husband and teenaged daughter. Heidi is a vocal advocate for LGBT rights and is proud to be from the first Midwestern state with full marriage equality. Find out more about Heidi, including her social networks, at www.heidicullinan.com.

The Giveaways – Two Ways To Win:

On The Devil Will Do tour, Heidi Cullinan is offering readers the chance to win books in two different ways.

Option One: THIS PORTION OF HEIDI’S GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Option Two: Enter by clicking on the Rafflecopter widget for a chance to win THREE books – The Devil Will Do, Miles and the Magic Flute, and Hero in the winner’s choice of Print or E-book