Guest Blog Post & Giveaway: When Players Play... - Marissa Monteilh

I'm so excited to have Author Marissa Monteilh stop by Book Referees to tell us what happens...

When Players Play...

What is a player anyway? The Urban Dictionary defines it as: A male who is skilled at manipulating others, and especially at seducing women by pretending to care about them, when in reality they are only interested in sex. I remember the term back in the 70's, during the days of the Black Exploitation films. If a man was a player, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing to his buddies as it meant he could "pull" the ladies, and to some women it meant he probably had charisma and sexual prowess. It also meant he was someone to "play" with if one could handle it, and that there was a risk of losing one's heart if one was not careful. Warning: When Players Play, you could possibly bond physically and emotionally, and he might use his charm, skill, money, and sweet talk to get you to do just that.

What makes some men want to play and others want to settle down? Some men get their playing out of their systems so that when they commit, they don't feel as though they're missing out on anything. But if a man doesn't want to settle down and he's honest and open about that fact, then it's on the woman to decide to either play along, or move on. Men can't play if there's no one to play with. This in no way excuses these men, but we women can only be responsible for ourselves.

Years ago I wrote the first book in the Dr. Feelgood series to show that no matter how often a man tells a woman he's not willing to get serious, some women will try and change him, some even thinking they will be the one to tame the playboy in him. But it can backfire, and often does. A man must be willing to give up his bachelorhood when he's ready, not when the woman requires it.

Dr. Feelgood was written to show women another side of the player. Not the type of player who says everything you want to hear, but the man who tells you up front that he is playing the field. Dr. Feelgood had a father who was a rolling stone who had hundreds of children, some he'd never met, and his father's father owned a brothel. Sometimes it's societal and familial. And it's not just men. There are some women who will not settle down no matter what, believing they don't need a man, and others who think their only worth is their bodies, almost giving men a license to say what the woman wants to hear just to get in her pants.

I didn't write this story to paint the picture that most men are playboys; I wrote it to show the life of one man who is. But if you look closer, Dr. Feelgood loves his mother, he's a good brother, and he's a great father. He doesn't go around telling women he loves them if he doesn't, and he doesn't make promises he can't keep, but he does break hearts. A lot of them. And sometimes, it's related to the fact that a woman feels she can change him or tame him.

In the sequel to Dr. Feelgood called You've Got It Bad, Dr. Makkai Worthy uncovers secrets and faces the generational curses that plagued him as a teen. He must realize that he's got it bad. So bad he can't continue living the way he's living, unable to settle down and find true love. This book is dedicated to women, like me, who've dated men like Makkai Worthy.

Can a player change? Real change happens over time, not overnight. And change starts with a decision, not with an ultimatum. We are not our pasts, or are we?

Thank You Marissa for stopping by Book Referees. 

We appreciate you...

Readers - Please leave a comment for your chance to win a copy of You Got It Bad....