Different World, Different Rules
Guest Post by Lolita Lopez
The most exciting part about writing sci-fi romances is that there are few rules that can't be broken. If you can dream it up and find a way to make it plausible, you can write it.
Ships with constant gravity? Yep. Interstellar travel? Check! A planet orbited by three moons? Why not! Earth human colonists living in the far reaches of the galaxy? Sure! Big, sexy men who are at least seven feet tall and deliciously muscular? Um…yes, please!
Writing about life on other planets also allows me to play with different cultural norms. The premise of the Grabbed series—that Earth descendants who have colonized a small planet under the protection of a warrior race called the Harcos hold a quarterly lottery to provide brides to these super sexy sky men—wouldn't fly on real Earth. You can't just go around chasing women through the woods, collaring them and taking them home where you plan to make sweet, sweet love to them. Like—people get arrested for that sort of thing, you know?
But, if you create a whole new world where the cultural ideas are slightly shifted from what we consider to be good and right and true and where those taboo tropes like capture fantasy are accepted…well…you get some interesting possibilities for your erotic romance!
Saved by Venom
By Lolita Lopez
Grabbed, Book Three
Synopsis:
To escape her father's debt to a loan shark, Dizzy seeks refuge in the upcoming Grab. She’d rather belong to one of those terrifying sky warriors from the battleship Valiant than to the sleazy criminal who wants her as his plaything.
The years of constant war haven’t been kind to highly decorated sniper Venom. Only the promise of earning a wife kept him going through deadly battles. Catching and collaring Dizzy fills him with incredible hope. Finally he has a woman of his own, a mate to love—and bind and adorn with his ropes.
After a brazen Splinter attack, the Shadow Force uncovers secrets about Dizzy’s late mother that entangle her in a web of deceit. To save Venom, her father and an operative named Terror, Dizzy digs deep and risks it all.
Venom refuses to stand idly by while Dizzy’s haunted past threatens the future they’re trying to build. He finally has a reason for living—and he’s not giving her up.
A little about the character Venom:
Rank: Land Corps Captain, SRU second-in-command
Specialty: Sniper
Mate: Dizzy
Ranked as the third best shot in the entire land corps force, Venom is nonetheless the most deadly of all their snipers. During the Sendarian siege, he volunteered to take a risky position outside the wire to keep the desperately needed supply routes open. Haunted by that battle, he lives for the day he can take a mate. Currently, he's the second-in-command of the SRU Alpha Team aboard the Valiant.
Rank: Land Corps Captain, SRU second-in-command
Specialty: Sniper
Mate: Dizzy
Ranked as the third best shot in the entire land corps force, Venom is nonetheless the most deadly of all their snipers. During the Sendarian siege, he volunteered to take a risky position outside the wire to keep the desperately needed supply routes open. Haunted by that battle, he lives for the day he can take a mate. Currently, he's the second-in-command of the SRU Alpha Team aboard the Valiant.
Sneak Peek Excerpt:
Dizzy gasped at the terrible, pained shout that echoed in the forest. Birds scattered as the guttural groan tore the stillness. She slid to a stop in the freezing cold snow and tried to slow her ragged breaths. Was that a man?
Was it the man?
She gulped hard and licked her lips. Glancing back in the direction of the awful sound, she tried to decide what to do. A sky warrior like the rugged, intimidating one who had been eying her would only make a sound like that if he was in big trouble.
The race officials had warned them that people hunted in these wounds. The gun laws out here weren’t like the strict zero-tolerance laws in The City. It was rumored everyone in the sticks had a weapon.
Maybe the sky warrior chasing her had been shot? Did he need help?
She warred with her conscience only a moment before exhaling roughly and turning back in the direction she’d come. Pressing a hand to her temple, she tried to gain control over the dizziness threatening to swamp her. She hated this damn sickness! Running and playing had been nearly impossible as a child. She couldn’t predict when the waves of nausea and dizziness would hit her but they usually happened at the worst times.
Like right now.
Bracing herself on a tree, Dizzy closed her eyes. She inhaled steadying breaths and performed a series of slow maneuvers that usually helped abate the uncomfortable swirling some. Today, thankfully, it worked. She managed to get moving again without feeling like she was going to puke or fall flat on her face.
The sounds of a struggle met her ears. She heard rattling chains and grunting. Hiding behind a tree, Dizzy licked her lips and gathered her courage before sliding to the side and peeking out at him.
Seated on the snow, he gripped a long, thick chain in both gloved hands and jerked hard. Her eyes widened at his shocking display of strength. When her gaze moved lower, she gasped at the sight of the awful-looking trap closed around his lower leg. The snow around his leg remained white and pristine so he wasn’t bleeding badly. Even so, the injury he would sustain if the trap wasn’t removed quickly would be a terrible one.
Trembling with cold and fear, she stepped out from behind the tree and revealed herself to him. His gaze snapped to her and she took a nervous step back. He let the chain fall from his hands. The tension eased from his face, softening his harsh features and making him look less vicious. They stared at one another for the longest time.
Finally, Dizzy found enough courage to move closer to him. Her footsteps crunched on the firm, packed snow. He glanced at her bare feet and scowled. “Why the hell did you take off your shoes?”
Taken aback by his gruff tone, she froze in place. Squeaking with fright, she explained, “The soles were too slippery. I nearly face-planted on a tree stump and decided it wasn’t worth the risk.”
He grunted. “You’ll care when you lose those toes to frostbite.”
Her stomach trembled violently and she stared at her frigid feet. “Are you serious? Am I really going to lose my toes?”
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Author Bio:
While browsing bookstore shelves as a teenager, Lo discovered the erotic writings of Anaïs Nin and A.N. Roquelaure. Certain her mother would not approve, Lo smuggled the books home and squirreled them away in the most likely of places: under her bed. Late at night, she delved into the sensual worlds both writers created.
As a co-ed studying biochemistry and genetics at Texas A&M University, Lo dabbled in creating naughty tales to entertain her friends. Study for a midterm or pen a deliciously dirty story to delight her small band of fans? Not surprisingly, Lo is now on an extended sabbatical from college.
Luckily, Lo stumbled onto the world of erotic romance publishers. She realized there were other readers and writers who loved and craved breathtaking romance with the spiciest of love scenes. She took a chance and submitted her first novella. The rest is history.
Lo lives in Texas with her Viking throwback of a husband and mischievous preschool-aged daughter. She also writes super sexy romances and scorching hot erotica under the pen name Roxie Rivera.
