Thursday, May 29, 2025

*Book Tour & Giveaway* To Desire the Stars-GUEST POST

 


Exiled alien prince Jarren Graf has never encountered a scent like Lissa Reyes.


To Desire the Stars

by Venus Campbell

Genre: SciFi Romance



Exiled alien prince Jarren Graf has never encountered a scent like Lissa Reyes'.

 

Abducted from Earth by Jarren, high-achiever Lissa Reyes discovered something hunted her scent. Both their scents, that is. As the key to reclaiming his throne and ending generations of galactic subjugation, Lissa knew Jarren could not let her go. But as a prince from a world built on olfactory power, Jarren's passions flared with her close. Every whiff grew their desire. Every touch increased their hunger for each other. By fate or chance, their love would change his civilization.

 

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Venus Campbell is the Principal of the Book of Venus publishing and the Winner of the Kroger Award for Excellence in Creative Writing.  She has finaled in various writing contests such as the Central Ohio Ignite the Flame and the New England Chapter- RWA First Kiss.  Campbell is a member of the Romance Writers of America (RWA) and the Authors Guild.  Campbell has written professionally since 2006 and has completed five single title manuscripts.  To Desire the Stars is her second publication. Campbell focuses on interweaving paranormal elements into romance stories, creating unique worlds which challenge people’s perceptions of self and preconceived notions of human love and relationships. 

 

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GUEST POST

What are you passionate about these days? I have more than one pen name. Under another pen name, I have been fighting to revise a young adult fantasy. Think Harry Potter meets the Wiz, and you get the drift. Like both of those series, this story extends into four books. I am beating the drum to get that finished and published by mid-year. Also, as I have grown older, I have had to change my diet. I am now grain free and, as such, have had to learn to bake my own donuts, cakes and pies. I have yet to find a bakery willing to bake grain-free goods. And I am very passionate about keeping my relationship to sugar.


What do you do to unwind and relax? I love speculative TV and gaming. My partner and I share a love of science fiction and fantasy, so we are keeping up with the big production shows: Wheel of Time, The Last of Us, Andor. My little one is watching Iyanu. On a gorier note, there’s The Boys (yes I do adore Karl Urban- he accidentally grabbed my butt once) and Invincible. We finished up the Residence which, although not science fiction or fantasy, is fantastical and, as always, exceptionally written- thank you Shonda Rhymes. 


My go-to relaxation process is to tune into my PBS Passport and binge watch any number of Masterpiece period pieces. Right now, I am working my way, again, through Poldark. There’s also Miss Scarlet. The classics are on there too like Foyle’s War. PBS is my bread and butter for calm. For gaming, we’ve finally worked through Legend of Zelda’s Tears of the Kingdom. We are working now on Echoes of Wisdom. We’ve also started playing Mass Effect. My partner already played it but I haven’t so we’re playing it together.


How to find time to write as a parent? When I was younger, I would write from after dinner to 2am depending on how excited I was about where the story was going. Now I write while the youngest is at school. The other kids are all adults living their best (or “worst” if you ask them on a bad day) lives out in the world. I also write in the evenings and sometimes on a weekend evening. But writing isn’t what takes a lot of time. Thinking about what your characters are doing is really what takes the time. I need to get better about allotting time in my day to do the thinking.


Describe yourself in 5 words or less! Persistent, humanist, empathetic, busy, creative


When did you first consider yourself a writer? I “became” a writer when I joined the Romance Writers of America. It seemed like I could claim to be a writer if I was actively working on my craft. That was 2005.


Do you have a favorite movie? Yes.


Which of your novels can you imagine made into a movie? If Hollywood could get their sci-fi act together, they could do To Desire the Stars as a movie. Hollywood is often too male-gender focused to do science fiction stories well. Korean cinema does speculative fiction better. What I would really love to see is one of my children’s series in a TV series- like Little Lulu.


What literary pilgrimages have you gone on? Last fall, to complete the first draft of my Young Adult, I traveled to Jamaica and stayed a week in a room banging away at my computer. I’ve also traveled to a cabin on the water in Rhode Island and a hotel room in Los Angeles. For several years, I attended the RWA annual conference and once (not remotely a literary pilgrimage) I attended the Romantic Times convention. Way too much excitement.


As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal? Venus would choose a lioness.




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5 comments:

  1. I am really excited to check this book out.

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  2. Hi Jodi- I am excited you want to read! I hope you enjoy it. It was lots of fun to write. Who doesn't like intergalactic intrigue?

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  3. Many thanks again to Inside the insanity for hosting me today. It was a blast. I am feeling the love.

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  4. I like the cover art. Looks great. Sounds really interesting.

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  5. Hi Marcy- thanks! The artist is Kit Foster over the UK. He is an extraordinary artist but I don't think he's doing covers anymore. Color me sad. At least I got two covers out of him to appreciate!

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