The Sexiest Men Alive(Anne Stuart)

OK, so I don't tend to go along with People magazine and their particular choices. It's not that I don't find George Clooney meltingly delightful, but he still hasn't managed to inspire me, so instead I'm going to show you pretty pictures and tell you what books they turned into. That's Gerard Butler as The Phantom of the Opera, and of course I wrote Night of the Phantom years before he played the part, but he captured it to an essence. That dreamy, sexual, romantic, broken-hearted yearning. Christine regretted her choice for the rest of her life.

And then there's Daniel Day-Lewis in Last of the Mohicans. He inspired just about everyone of my historicals -- I mean, who could resist that hair? That chest? That lean animal grace running through the forests. Sigh.

And then there's Yoshiki, found of X-Japan and all around Japanese rock God. He went through a period where he looked like a drag queen, but now he's into his inner sex god look, to which I enthusiastically say "Hurray!" Hero fodder for Blind Date from Hell, musical inspiration for Into the Fire, and just all around fun.

Then there's the sexiest man alive, Senior Division. David Carradine must be in his seventies by now, and I still lust after him, almost as much as I did when I was still a teenager. Then again, I was a very precocious child. He was the model for my hero in BARRETT'S HILL, back in 1974, and he pops up every now and then. Ah, but you shoulda seen him in his prime.

That's him in Shane, the short-lived western tv series that saved my life (that story later).

You want more lusciousness, you say? Hell, yes. Clive Owen, cigarette and all, did double duty in COLD AS ICE and ICE STORM.

Etushi Toyokawa works as Takashi O'Brien, with a touch of Yoshiki and Gackt thrown in .

And that's just the beginning. There's Alan Rickman in a thousand books (you can hear his sarcastic drawl in any number of my characters).

And Frank Langella in his prime as Dracula gave me THE DEMON COUNT.

And then there's anime. Reno (above) from Advent Children, who'll have his own book and destroy my career. And Howl from Howl's Moving Castle, appearing as a snarky wizard in THE UNFORTUNATE MISS FORTUNES.

It's a lovely job, living in a fantasy world with all these luscious men. And I get paid for it as well.

Life is extremely good to me.

Who do you guys lust after? Do you use any actors as mental stand-ins when you read? Is there on type you like more than others?

Try uploading pictures of your favorite hotties in the reply section. The more manly beauty we share with the world, the happier everyone will be.

Back to deadline hell with me! Enjoy the pretties!