Author Dana Littlejohn

Thursday, July 14, 2016

Thursday Tips: business cards

Hello everyone!

For those who are still with me welcome back and for all my new followers welcome to my blog!
Let me tell you what you will find when you visit on Thursdays. This is the day set aside for tips to help you in your quest to be author extraordinaire! (I know that's not really a word, but work with me)

So, to make that journey less rocky I will share tips and I have invited some extraordinary authors to share what they have learned and tricks that work for them.

Since today is the first post I will share a little trick an author shared with me once that I continue to do because it's help my hometown popularity.

Most authors bring swag to book signings and pass them out during author events. Post cards, business cards and the like whether you're out of town or in your home town. When you're out socially consider putting a business card in with your tips. People are more open to support a name they recognize especially when the are hometown folk. When you're doing something locally you could be the next human interest story for the local paper or news. You never know who may pick up your card.

That's my Thursday Tip!
Come back next week and see what new tips we have for you. And please, if the tops have helped you leave comments and let us know! Remember like videos via periscope coming soon! Periscope/danalittlejohn

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Wicked Wednesday- Dana Littlejohn: Tri-Romance, M/F, romance

Hello everyone! 
Thanks for coming by and checking out Wicked Wednesdays! On Wednesday you will see a wicked snippet from my books and guest authors books also. This spot is open to all genres! So authors contact me for a spot to show off your sneak peeks. Today I will be showing a quick look at Opal, Debbie and their friend Roy from my M/F romance novel Tri-Romance. 

Excerpt  

Opal led the way to her room stopping at the first on top of the stairs. The mat in front of her door was black with green writing— LEAVE YOUR CLOTHES AT THE DOOR. Already accustomed to her room rules, Debbie and Roy were disrobing before they reached the top of the stairs. The carpet, walls and ceiling were all black. Track lighting with four black lights held the only light in the room. On the ceiling, over a king-sized, four post bed, was a large mirror that, on closer inspection, turned out to be several smaller mirrors. Pale, sheer green material was wrapped corner to corner around the top of the bed and hung loosely down each post, giving off a faint glow on the black satin coverlet.
One at a time they discarded their clothes and shoes and entered the room. 

Opal and Debbie slid across the bed then turned to Roy. 
“So, what are we drinking?” Opal asked.
Roy stood before them. A soft purple hue tinged his pale skin. His youthful status showed in his physique. The slender features—narrow chest, long thin legs—were the tell-tale signs of a young man who had not yet reached manhood. He snatched the bag away from the bottle he carried. 
“Tequila!”
“Tequila, huh?”
“Yup. We’re going to do body shots tonight.” 
“Do we need to go get some shot glasses?” Debbie asked.
Roy smiled and walked to the bed. “No, my little Latin lover.” He dropped a kiss on her forehead. “I said body shots. That means your body will be my glass. Lay back and I’ll demonstrate.”
Roy poured the drink onto her belly button when she complied. Opal moved closer. As the liquid filled the space Roy sucked wildly on her belly before it overflowed to the bed. Debbie burst into giggles.
“That, my lovely, is a body shot. Much more fun without the glasses, don’t you think?” 
“Hell yeah.” 
“Want one, Opal?”
“Hell yeah!” Opal answered mimicking her friend. She flopped back on the bed playfully.
Roy poured a shot on her and licked it off while Debbie drank from the bottle. He took turns drinking off them and they took turns drinking from the bottle.
“Hey, when do we get lick shots off of you?” Debbie asked, with a slight slur giving Roy a push.
“When do you want to?”
“Well, it’s my turn, so do me first, then I’ll do you.” 
“All right,” he chuckled, looking at the two of them. “Opal, would you care to help me?”
“Sure, what the hell.” 
Roy poured the alcohol onto Debbie’s stomach. Opal dropped her face onto Debbie’s belly and drank noisily then blew on her stomach like she would a toddler. Debbie lay back in full laughter. Opal touched her mouth then turned a frown to Roy.
“How’d you do that without cutting your lip on that damn charm?”
Roy burst into laughs. “I have prior experience with belly rings.”
“Okay, Roy, your turn,” Debbie said pushing against his chest.
Opal took the bottle as Roy lay back on the bed. Debbie positioned herself with her face over his stomach. Opal laid on her other side near his groin. Debbie took the bottle and poured the drink across his abdomen. 
“Whoops,” she exclaimed on a laugh.
Opal beat the bed and pressed her face on Roy’s thigh in an attempt to muffle her laughter.
Roy rose onto his elbows. “Brother. You guys are drunk.” 
“No, it was merely a slip of the hand,” Debbie said. “No big deal. Chica can wash her sheets in the morning. Now lay back down.”
Roy did as instructed. Debbie pushed the drink into Roy’s hand then leaned over to lick at the liquid she spilled. Opal scrambled over his legs and joined her. Together they covered his chest and stomach with licks sucking the liquid from his belly button.
“You guys should invite me over, like, every week or something,” he said when they were done. “This could be our Thursday night thing,” he added rising on his elbows again.
Opal crawled to the top of the bed beside him to lie on a pillow. Debbie rested on his leg. 
“But next time I won’t bring Tequila. It looks like it might be a bit much for you guys,” he said with a chuckle.
“Uh-uh, Roy, you can’t invite yourself over here. You know the rules. We call you, and you come,” Opal reminded him.
“Chica is right, Roy. I’ve got a nice buzz going over here and your chatter is messing it up,” Debbie told him.
“All right fine. That’s enough drinking then. I want some pussy before you guys pass out on me. So, who’s it going to be?”
Opal threw her hand up. “I’ll do it.”
“Just remember, Roy, you’re our threesome guy. Just sex, no strings, remember,” Debbie said going to the other side of the bed as Roy positioned himself over Opal. 

“Yeah, yeah, I got it, just sex.” He dropped a kiss on Debbie’s head then to Opal’s lips. “But tonight it’s gonna be great sex,” he muttered as he eased himself into her. 

Twin sisters, Opal and Pearl Jefferson, and their best friend Debra Flores were living blissfully by their no strings attached rule, enjoying the many comforts of a good life. All was well in their world until Frank, Jake, Doug and Rakim entered into it. When one of the girls abandons their well practiced rule and falls in love, does her decision throw a monkey wrench into the lives of everyone else around her? Or does it open up the possibility for love to capture them all?

Tri-Romance is available now directly from my website in all eBook formats (kindle, nook, kobo...) and in print. Www.danalittlejohn.net  

Come back next week to see what our guest blogger will have for us next!

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Tasty Tuesday- Tilapia

Hello everyone!

Welcome to the first of many tasty Tuesday blogs. First a little about what you'll see here. 

I love food! I love trying new foods, however over these last years I have weaned myself away from many meats in search of a lighter more healthy diet with all kinds of foods.

So, that's what I'll be posting: light, healthy foods in recipes that I have tried, enjoyed and want to share with you.

If you have recipes on the lighter side please feel free to send them in so we all can try it.

Today's recipe is
Grilled Tilapia with Chimichurri & Corn Salad
First off can I just say YUM! I found this recipe in Rachel Ray's magazine Every Day. It's perfect for a quick summer dinner or anytime of year. I'm not a real big fan of tilapia so I also tried it with catfish too and it came out fantastic. Leave comments so I  know how it came out and how you liked it. Enjoy!


Dinner for two
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 10 min

4 tilapia filets
3 tbsp finely chopped red onions
1/2 cup orange bell pepper finely chopped
2 1/2 cups sweet corn
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
1tbsp lemon juice
4 tbsps olive oil
3 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup fresh basil

Mix basil, mint, 2 tbsp olive oil, lemon juice and 2 tsp vinegar in small bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.
In another bowl mix corn, bell pepper, onion, 1 tbsp olie oil and remaining vinegar.
Brush fish with remaining olive oil, grill until done.
Plate as seen in picture and enjoy! 

Bon Appetite! See you next Tuesday


Monday, July 11, 2016

Me Mondays

Hi everyone!
Welcome back to my followers and to my new followers.
As posted in my previous heads up post, I have restructured and revamped my blog to make it better and more educational for my readers and fellow authors.

As the title implies, today is dedicated to my updates: where I'll be virtually and in real time, what's new with me, my new releases, what I'm working on and so forth.

My monthly newsletter is live and doing well. If you're not getting it you might want to. Everyone who gets the newsletter is automatically entered in the drawing to win an original item from my craft shop. (There's a craft shop tab on the website) The newsletter is also your vehicle to ask me questions. When you send in your questions you are entered again into the monthly drawing. The answer to those questions will be posted here as well. What is exclusive to the newsletter is the free reads. There are free reads on my website for your enjoyment but I offer different ones for the newsletter as well.

Currently I am editing The Right Choice. It is book II of the Happily Ever After: By Any Means Necessary series.
This series is basically about the lives of established couples and how they deal with issues in their relationship.

Book I: Seven Year Switch was about Kyle and Sonja Winters, a mid thirties, childless couple, together 10 years, married 7 and happy. Sonja discovers a secret that rocks their marriage to the core. It will either destroy them or they will have to restructure to survive it.
Available now

Book II: The Right Choice, is about Christian and Andrea Cooper. They have a long term marriage, 20+ years, are in their 40s and are new empty nesters. Basically this book shows how you could get caught up in doing the right thing and push someone away unintentionally. Even after being together for years you can still make mistakes.
It will be available late August, 2016.

Book III: Seducing Mr Jefferson is about Daniel and Kamiah Jefferson. They are in their mid twenties and have been married 5 years. Daniel spends many hours working and his free time is split between sleep and his friends. Kamiah feels their young marriage has become settled and has lost the fire it had in the beginning. Instead of taking it personal she decides to do something about it.
This book is only 3/4 completed. I will have it done and edited for a October release.

Next up is my Greek mythology based urban novel, Aphrodite's Day Off. Aphrodite wants to hang out with Poseidon in the ocean. Zeus denies her request because the last time she took time off his precious humans went through what their history now refers to as "the dark ages". So Aphrodite offers her sons Eros and Himeros to take her place. Zeus gives the young gods a task to see if they can handle the goddess of love's job. This book takes you along for the ride.
It is completed, but needs editing and a cover. Im hoping for a holiday release, but we'll see. I will keep you posted on that one.

Also on my to do list:

An urban fantasy vampire novel (non gory), The Dioni Clan. After a long time of hiding Lord Nickolas, leader of the Dioni clan, allows his most gifted warriors to choose a wife. In this novel we follow Mikhail, Jonathan and Santos in their search.
This book is about halfway completed.

Check back every day for learning, promotion and fun things things going on, contests held for prizes every Friday and updates about me every Monday!

Hi everyone!
Welcome back to my followers and to my new followers.
As posted in my previous heads up post, I have restructured and revamped my blog to make it better and more educational for my readers and fellow authors.

As the title implies, today is dedicated to my updates: where I'll be virtually and in real time, what's new with me, my new releases, what I'm working on and so forth.

My monthly newsletter is live and doing well. If you're not getting it you might want to. Everyone who gets the newsletter is automatically entered in the drawing to win an original item from my craft shop. (There's a craft shop tab on the website) The newsletter is also your vehicle to ask me questions. When you send in your questions you are entered again into the monthly drawing. The answer to those questions will be posted here as well. What is exclusive to the newsletter is the free reads. There are free reads on my website for your enjoyment but I offer different ones for the newsletter as well.

Currently I am editing The Right Choice. It is book II of the Happily Ever After: By Any Means Necessary series.
This series is basically about the lives of established couples and how they deal with issues in their relationship.

Book I: Seven Year Switch was about Kyle and Sonja Winters, a mid thirties, childless couple, together 10 years, married 7 and happy. Sonja discovers a secret that rocks their marriage to the core. It will either destroy them or they will have to restructure to survive it.
Available now

Book II: The Right Choice, is about Christian and Andrea Cooper. They have a long term marriage, 20+ years, are in their 40s and are new empty nesters. Basically this book shows how you could get caught up in doing the right thing and push someone away unintentionally. Even after being together for years you can still make mistakes.
It will be available late August, 2016.

Book III: Seducing Mr Jefferson is about Daniel and Kamiah Jefferson. They are in their mid twenties and have been married 5 years. Daniel spends many hours working and his free time is split between sleep and his friends. Kamiah feels their young marriage has become settled and has lost the fire it had in the beginning. Instead of taking it personal she decides to do something about it.
This book is only 3/4 completed. I will have it done and edited for a October release.

Next up is my Greek mythology based urban novel, Aphrodite's Day Off. Aphrodite wants to hang out with Poseidon in the ocean. Zeus denies her request because the last time she took time off his precious humans went through what their history now refers to as "the dark ages". So Aphrodite offers her sons Eros and Himeros to take her place. Zeus gives the young gods a task to see if they can handle the goddess of love's job. This book takes you along for the ride.
It is completed, but needs editing and a cover. Im hoping for a holiday release, but we'll see. I will keep you posted on that one.

Also on my to do list:

An urban fantasy vampire novel (non gory), The Dioni Clan. After a long time of hiding Lord Nickolas, leader of the Dioni clan, allows his most gifted warriors to choose a wife. In this novel we follow Mikhail, Jonathan and Santos in their search.
This book is about halfway completed.

Check back every day for learning, promotion and fun things things going on, contests held for prizes every Friday and updates about me every Monday!

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Tasty Tuesday- tilapia

Hello everyone!
Welcome to the first of many tasty Tuesday blogs.
First a little about what you'll see here.
I love food! I love trying new foods, however over these last years I have weaned myself away from many meats in search of a lighter more healthy diet with all kinds of foods.
So, that's what I'll be posting: light, healthy foods in recipes that I have tried, enjoyed and want to share with you.
If you have recipes on the lighter side please feel free to send them in so we all can try it.

Today's recipe is
Grilled Tilapia with Chimichurri & Corn Salad

First off can I just say YUM! I found this recipe in Rachel Ray's magazine Every Day. It's perfect for a quick summer dinner or anytime of year. I'm not a real big fan of tilapia so I also tried it with catfish too and it came out fantastic. Leave comments so I  know how it came out and how you liked it. Enjoy!

Friday, June 24, 2016

Back on the grid!

Hello everyone!
Welcome back to my blog for those who followed me before and for all my new followers welcome to you.
For those who don't know me let me introduce myself. I am Dana Littlejohn, author of sensual and erotic romance. My books are usually multicultural featuring people from different cultures, but the main characters are always strong women of color -African American and Latino.
I love writing about strong women who have their own stuff, know what they want from the men in their lives and the world around and they're not afraid to fight for it.
I have been writing most of my life to entertain myself and my friends. I sold my first short story in October 2006. In 2012 I discontinued blogging to pursue twitter, Facebook and other online venues. Now here it is 2016 and, though I've had much success with the other things, I want to get back to just blogging with the readers and sharing knowledge with other authors.

What to expect from me this time around?
Well I'm glad you asked :-) I don't remember what my schedule was last time but this time I'd like to be more hands on. Posts will go up every week day. Each day will have its own theme. Thus the posts will be different every time but the topic will be the same. Here are the themes ill be working with.

Me Mondays
As the name suggests, Mondays will be the days I update the blog about me and all that I have going.

Tasty Tuesdays
This day you get to know a little about me personally because I will be sharing the new recipes that I have tried and you could try them as well.

Wicked Wednesday
On Wednesday I will have a guest blogger post some wicked excerpts. This way we could learn about new books on the genre we love together.

Thursday Tips
Thursdays will be reserved for learning new skills or bettering our skills as authors. It will always be open to authors to post their tips and info and at the end leave info for us to find them and their books

Fiesta Fridays
Contest time! Every Friday will be a different interactive contest. Followers will be asked to find a special icon and email its location. A list of participating authors will be given. A random winner will be chosen and winner announced on the Monday blog update.

That's the plan! Follow and join the fun. The restart begins
July 11, 2016

To keep up with me until then here are my links. Those who join my newsletter will automatically be entered into the monthly contest to win prizes.

Dana's website

Dana's Facebook

Dana's Twitter

Coming soon... Periscope!