I know what you mean about the cover, it has a very nice feel to it. Hard Hats is an excellent anthology, one of the few times where I read several stories twice. And there wasn't one stinker in the entire book. Besides the fact the stories are erotic, what really stood out for me was the playful mood of the stories. I hope there might be a Hard Hats 2.

And as far as writing something controversial, I've always felt authors are storytellers who have a story to tell. It's like this gift, and you shouldn't shy away from something because of what other people might think. I have my reading boundaries, and if I don't like something, I don't read it. And I don't pass judgments.

I recently read an anthology where a few of the stories didn't sit too well with me, Men of Mystery, but I recognized the exceptional quality of storytelling and still gave the book a good review.

LouisaClark

I submitted to Men of Mystery, but wasn't accepted. A couple of the stories were available online, and I did think they were much better than mine so I didn't feel grumpy about the fact I wasn't selected. Greg Wharton and Ian Phillips tend to publish fiction that's a fair amount darker and edgier than what I write. They're really wonderful guys so sometimes I wish I could write something for them, but I'm not sure I can. We'll see.

You should go for it!

Thanks for the vote of confidence. :)