1. Do you write a single genre or do your fingers flow over the keys
creating tales in many forms? Does your reading choices reflect your writing
choices? Are there genres you wouldn’t attempt?
I write in multiple genres. Keeps my juices flowing. I love historical,
contemporary, paranormal, suspense, you name it.
I like to read just about everything except heavy-duty SciFi,
where the story tends to read like a manual. Too dry and uninteresting for me.
Probably does have a lot to do with what I write.
Heavy-duty SciFi is definitely one genre I’ll always avoid writing.
J
2.
Heroes, Heroines,
Villains. Which are your favorite to write?
I love a great hero. A guy who’s strong yet kind with a great
sense of humor. Always a joy to write. I love strong heroines too. Feisty
ladies who can’t be put down by anyone. And, I also like writing villains,
especially psychopaths – you know, the kind without a conscience. Think Ted
Bundy.
3.
Heroes. How do you find
them? Do pictures, real life or plain imagination create the man you want every
reader to love? Do they come before the plot or after you have the idea for the
story?
When I’m outlining my novels, I go online and look at photos of
guys I think would be great in the role. I describe what I see in the photos. I
could probably work from imagination, but then I wouldn’t get my eye candy fix.
They come while I’m plotting. I see scenes in my head when I’m
thinking of a new novel. Don’t see the people exactly – more of what they’re
doing, thinking.
4.
Heroines. How do you
find them? Do pictures, real life or imagination create the woman you want the
reader to root for? Do they appear before the plot or after you have the idea
for the story?
Same as my heroes – go online to find women that match what I have
in my mind. Or, if I don’t have any ideas, I can get some by looking at photos.
Imagination and life experience create the women I want readers to
love.
Like the heroes, the heroines’ personalities come up while I’m
plotting the story.
5.
Villains or villainesses
or an antagonist, since they don’t always have to be the bad guy or girl. They
can be a person opposed to the hero’s or heroine’s obtaining their goal. How do
you choose one? How do you make them human?
They generally come about while I’m plotting the story. I know
what the conflict will be, so the antagonists tend to pop up as I’m plotting.
Some of my antagonists have mellowed in my stories, but not all.
If I am writing a villain, I like to write psychopathic ones – they have no
conscience. I’ve read a lot of psychology books about the criminal mind. The
public generally believes that a bad childhood leads to serial killing. Not
true at all. Ted Bundy had a great home life, a very devoted mother and
stepfather. He killed because he liked to kill. Gave him a sense of power –
holding someone’s life in his hands. Those kinds of monsters fascinate me. I
like to explore what makes them tick.
6.
What is your latest
release? Who is the hero, heroine and or the villain?
Surrendering to the Beast, book two in my Taming the Beast series – erotic
paranormal/romantic comedy.
My hero is Daemon, a satyr who wants to look fully human. He goes
to From Crud to Stud, a makeover service for supernatural beings in New Orleans
Since Surrendering to the
Beast is a romantic comedy, it doesn’t have a villain, so to speak. The
closest would be Zoe, a reformed demon who’s an enforcer at the service. She
gives Daemon hell, but it’s all in fun.
7.
What are you working on
now?
Book five of my Taming the Beast series and another erotic
historical series.
8.
How can people find you?
My bio and links:
I’m an award-winning, bestselling novelist in erotic,
paranormal, contemporary and historical romance for Kensington, Samhain
Publishing, Ellora’s Cave, Siren Publishing, Booktrope, Luminosity, Decadent,
and indie. Yay! Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, Romantic
Times and numerous online sites have praised my work, and trust me, I’m
forever grateful for that. I’ve had my books reach finals in the EPIC
competition, one title was named Book of the Year at a review site, and others
have won awards in RWA-sponsored contests. I’m actually featured in the 2012
Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market. Talk about feeling like a freaking
star. Before my writing career, I was the editor of an award–winning Midwestern
newspaper and worked in Story Direction for a Hollywood
production company. Outside of being an admitted and unrepentant chocoholic,
I’ve flown a single-engine plane (scary stuff), rewired an old house using an
electricity for dummies book, and have been known to moan like Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally whenever I’m eating
anything Mexican or Italian. Yeah, I like to eat (burp).
You can check me out here – yes, I am everywhere! J
3 comments:
Thanks for hosting me. :)
Enjoyed the interview!
Tina, Thanks for being here. Kate thanks for the visit,
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