Claire Cray's Blog

Hey, pals! I've finally set up a private reader group on Facebook. I'll be sharing secret updates and freebies and chatting it up—plus geeking out over fun, spooky, sexy content.

Join the group here!

Are you subscribed to my newsletter? If not, here's a good reason to hop on: Every Friday from Sep 11 - Oct 16, I'm sending out a FREE spooky, smutty m/m short story.



Get more details and subscribe here!

We're two stories in so far—one set in New York and one on an unnamed bayou—with a third on the way tomorrow night.

If you read my collection Spooky Smutty Stories: Classic Tales Gone Gay, you'll know the level of creepiness you're in for. Not trying to give you nightmares, but I'll be sure to include content warnings if things get too harrowing.

I'm writing these as the event unfolds, and having a blast chatting with readers over email and Twitter. Hit me up with all your Spooky Season feelings!

See you in your inbox tomorrow <3

From now through Sunday, my new release In Strange Woods is just 99 cents!

Get it now. (Note: This links straight to the reviews to get around a horrible Amazon glitch that's causing the page to reload constantly! Just scroll up to purchase.)

Grab it and get your fill of steamy slow burn romance, rainstorms, ancient forests, sexy rural anarchists, hot guys who build things, cool photographers with big feelings, and lonely folks finding community <3

Geez, I'd love to get better at describing my own books. Anyway, this one has a ton of nature and heart, and I hope you like it!

P.S. Are you following my Spooky Season newsletter event? I'll make a separate post, but I'm sending out a free short story every Friday until Oct. 16. Subscribe here!

Things you'll find in In Strange Woods when it comes out Friday (pre-order now!):

Crashing waves
Ancient forests
Kurt Cobain
Battered leather jacket
Old diner
Eerie hitchhiking moment
Renovated mid-century trailer
Rainstorm
Masturbation
Blackberry thorns
Lookalike
Whiskey
"Eco-terrorism"
Sexy backwoods eccentric
Tattoos
Standoff on a bridge
More Kurt Cobain
Hot slow sex
Cemetery
Beautiful man muscles
Mood swings
Murder
Elvis
An actual plot
Very good weed
Even better blowjobs
Oregon history
Roy Orbison
Cozy pickup truck
Gun
Scenic river
Slow burn romance
The most unequivocal HEA that's ever come out of my brain
...and more!

1,000 thanks to all the early readers leaving reviews <3 To everyone else, I so hope you dig it! And if you wanna get in the mood before Friday, remember to check out the playlist.

P.S. Join my mailing list for updates on new releases, freebies, behind-the-book tidbits!

Friends! I'm so excited to announce the imminent release of my new m/m romance novel, In Strange Woods:

Wild hearts and hidden passions ignite in the stormy coastal woods of the Pacific Northwest.

James is a moody photographer from New York City whose wealthy family was recently murdered in a high-profile crime, leaving him a massive fortune — including one oddly unexplained piece of property deep in the foothills of coastal Oregon. Convulsed by grief and desperate to get away, he sets out to find it...and is quickly sucked into a bizarre spiral of events involving dead-end logging roads, a mysterious doppelganger, and a soft-spoken, mouthwatering local hunk named Hunter Quaid.

Read the full description and pre-order In Strange Woods on Amazon!

There's a lot of mood in this book, and a lot of music. To capture the vibe, I made a Spotify playlist inspired by all of the songs referenced and not referenced in the story. The backwoods of the Oregon Coast are ancient, lush, and full of mysterious life, and sometimes it really feels like it was directed by David Lynch.

This playlist has flavors of grunge, blues, jazz, rockabilly, and a little hint of psychedelia. Think Nirvana, Roy Orbison, Otis Redding, Janis Joplin...give it a listen and tell me what you think!

Lots of exciting things coming up, believe it or not. Be sure to catch me on Twitter and subscribe to my newsletter for all the updates and freebies I can give ya.

Happy to be back! xoxo

I'm back with a new release, my friends!

Spooky Smutty Stories: Classic Tales Gone Gay is a collection of seven short and steamy m/m tales inspired by some of my favorite classic folktales and urban legends.



My favorite is "Runner, Runner," a stormy, sexy, sad-eyed spin on the ghostly hitchhiker trope. A close second is the sequel to my old story "Backwoods Beast." I've always wanted to cap off that story, so I decided to use the O.G. and the sequel as the start and finish for this collection.

It's been a while since I took a hard hiatus from social media and left my author accounts gathering dust. But I'm thrilled to finally have something new out! Hope you read and enjoy.

xo
Claire

All M/M, all erotic, all free. Read ’em & weep…with joy. Short Stories: Aniki’s Garden (yakuza and art historian, 1966 Tokyo) Thirsting for More (vampires, a contemporary hipster neighborhood) Backwoods Beast (hot redneck werewolves, modern rural Oregon) Novel Trilogy: The Hidden Talents Trilogy (hot troubled sex-hungry psychics — Instafreebie links in Goodreads blog post)

Sometimes I look back at what I’ve written like “ah geez what the heck.” Anyway here’s a story I dedicate to retro Japanese porn. This was written for the Goodreads M/M Romance Group’s Love Is An Open Road Anthology in 2015. It is potentially problematic. Please do not take it as an endorsement of stereotypes. … Continue reading "Aniki’s Garden – M/M Yakuza TentacleMood-Porn"

Y'all, I've sold out and must take a real hiatus from book peddling.

Since I can't really lift a finger to market my most recent releases, I'm giving them away for free on the semi-sly. It makes me feel better.

Dark, snarky, angsty, nasty, lovable psychic dudes. My favorite characters and favorite pairing I've ever written. Subliminal depression allegories. Delicious frenemy sex. A great big ol' love story between two major weirdos.

Get the entire Hidden Talents trilogy via these Instafreebie links.

Book 1: Rebel Hell

Book 2: Wind Change

Book 3: Hard Games



Read, review, tell ya friends, save that $ for coffee.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
Claire

(For those familiar with the old HT novella series, this trilogy is an awesomely remastered, re-edited, re-sexxedup version.)

Can't believe it: Rebel Hell, the first book in the new Hidden Talents Trilogy, is out now! Get it everywhere.

I still can't believe I wrote a story like this. Psychics, evil conspiracies, action?! So unlike me. But this turned out to be the most character-driven thing I've ever written, with an ensemble cast of smart, complicated dudes whose friendships and rivalries add up to a hot, delicious mess.

Jin and Ken, the two central characters in Hidden Talents, were a blast to write. Jin starts out as a carefree baddie who loves to make trouble. But once he meets Ken, a strange teen with a dark past and a surly attitude, Jin finds himself changing in ways he never imagined.

This story has some dark themes in it. Central to the tale is the concept of Talent. Talent means superhuman power, and those who have it — Talents, as they refer to themselves — develop extraordinary physical, intellectual, and psychic abilities. Nobody knows where Talent comes from, but it often appears after a traumatic experience. Suffice it to say, many of the most powerful Talents in the books have been through some shit. So be prepared for references to past abuse, torture, rape, murder, and psychic mutilation.

Also be prepared for loads of sarcastic humor, sex scenes ranging from mean and nasty to slow and tender, and an international roster of fine-ass men who get in all kinds of trouble.

Ken, an enigmatic young Talent who's just entered the real world after a lifetime of isolation and torture.

Jin, a devious Russian telepath who loves nothing more than to stir up trouble.

Lip, an affable Australian hunk who uses his razor-sharp intellect to watch out for his friends.

Mark, a bisexual Cuban-American whose dark charisma almost makes up for what a moody jerk he can be.

Sky, a beautiful, drug-addicted empath fresh out of the Osaka underworld.

Kel, a stoic intelligence expert from Senegal with little patience for dramatics.

David and Luke, lovely Irish twins with major issues, and their older brother Dylan, who just wants them to stay alive.

Aki, a self-exiled yakuza heir determined to overcome a devastating tragedy.

Jackson, a coldly charismatic precognitive with a secret plan in which all of the Talents have roles to play — whether they want to or not.

(Which one would u?)

The second book in the series is already out, so get readin', mates. The third will be available for pre-order by the end of the week, so stay tuned!