Where did the two of you first meet? And why the name "Karen Nappa"?
We ‘met’ online on Goodreads. We befriended and commented on each other’s reviews, recommended books – that sort of thing. When Ellen reached out with a question about a comment Claudia made, our contact grew more intense.
When we had to come up with a pseudonym, we wanted a name that meant something to both of us but different from our own names. ‘Nappa’ is a very special man to both of us, using his Fetlife handle for our last name wasn’t difficult. We initially suggested Karen Grey Nappa but our publisher didn’t want to go with the middle name and we ended up with just Karen Nappa.
Why did you choose to write Seasoned BDSM Romance with HEA?
We write seasoned romance because we’re both past forty and we wanted to read about characters more like us.
BDSM Romance because we’re both in the lifestyle and we want to show the real safe, sane and consensual relationships. It pains us that the lifestyle is portrayed as abusive and we want to show the beauty too.
Happily Ever After, because we don’t like book series where you’re forced to buy book after book because you want to know how the story ends. In our opinion, the reader deserves a happy ending and so do the characters after they overcome whatever they have to battle.
What were your dreams during your childhood? Did you ever consider forming a writing duo?
Ellen: I wanted to be an astronaut. I read a lot of science fiction when I was young. I never dreamed I would be a writer, although I have lots of experience editing from grading student papers in one of my past lives as a teacher. Co-writing is the only way I can see me succeeding at writing though.
Claudia: I wanted to be a vet and an Olympic champion. I did write a (romance) book when I was twelve (of course it never got published). I’ve been a journalist and wrote a management book, so Karen Nappa wasn’t my first endeavor. It was however my first co- writing experience and the first time I wrote (entirely) in English instead of my native language.
What thoughts did you have about each other when you first met?
Claudia: I found her cute and a bit of a brat (laughing). She’s an introvert, so her initial reactions are more reserved than mine. When Ellen asked me a question about BDSM, I knew she wasn’t in the lifestyle (yet) but curious to try. Since I love explaining and teaching and she has an endless hunger for knowledge, I loved introducing her to the real BDSM lifestyle. Ellen: I’m definitely a bit of a brat. I was thrilled when we met. (Also exhausted as I’d flown in from the states that morning and spent the day in Amsterdam doing museums.) I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but Claudia and her family were wonderfully welcoming and I had a really great time. I thought how wonderful these people are to let a stranger stay with them.
How did you celebrate the release of your debut novel, Trapped (Club Indigo on April 11th, 2019?
After we started writing together and texting daily, the idea to meet in person was formed. Ellen traveled to the Netherlands in April 2019 and stayed for about a week with Claudia and her family. They hung out, cooked with and for each other and did some sightseeing. Together we visited ‘de Keukenhof’ to see the most beautiful tulips, but also went to a spinning wheel factory. (Ellen spins and knits in her spare time.)
What is your writing process like?
Usually, Claudia is the one to instigate a story and she starts plotting and writing. Ellen does (a lot) of editing, adds some realism to the story (laughing) and Americanizes the interactions. When we have about 10,000 words written we send the first part to our beta readers. They are invaluable in the process. Giving us hints about flow, characters, events and – since some of them are living or have lived in Kansas City – give tips about local events or places. We repeat this several times until the story is complete. Meanwhile, Ellen goes over the writing parts with a fine-toothed comb and leaves copious amounts of notes and comments. We also use writing software and macros to help with finding (common) errors.
In about three months we have created a manuscript and we send it to our editor for the first time. When she sends it back it not only has several corrected (spelling) errors but also precious tips about flow and characterization. We go over the story together again and return it to our editor for a second edit.
Can you believe eBooks still have errors in them after all this reading, proofreading, and editing? Believe us they have!
What inspired the plot of your book, Sonja's Confession: A Club Indigo short story?
Sonja’s Confession is a sequel to Cherished (Club Indigo Book Four). Although Cherished is our most successful book, we (and some reviewers we value) thought we missed the opportunity to show more about Sonja’s and Derek’s past – what made them the people they are.
What are your views on interracial relationships?
We’re actually surprised it is an issue at all. We’re all humankind. We love diversity and try to convey our belief through our books. We have already portrayed a lot of relationships and belief the most important trait about them isn’t the gender, the amount of people in the relationship, or the color of their skin, hair or eyes – it’s the passion and strength they bring to confront what is holding them back and succeed in their goal, unconditional love.
From where do you collect photos for some #MondayMotivation on Hot Bod Monday?
Our go-to website for gorgeous pictures for our website, trailers, social media and book covers is depositphotos.com where you can buy (reasonably priced) stock photos. We also love and use unsplash.com and they often provide us with #MondayMotivation (wink)
How did you come up with the character of Derek Kiriakis in "Cherished"?
That’s a really funny story.
So, Claudia is in the BDSM Lifestyle and regularly visits clubs. The play scenes in the books are often from her experience (either by participating or watching). The scene where Sonja and Derek meet, is an actual scene that played out in front of her one night after she and her Master were winding down from playing.
On her way back home in the car, she wrote the opening scene for Cherished. While writing the scene it became clear to her why Sonja hadn’t found a Dom yet – the right Daddy hadn’t arrived. Before the scene ended the Daddy had a name Derek.
When Claudia told Ellen about the scene and Derek, Ellen came up with his background.
Which is your favorite book in the "Club Indigo" series?
Bad Mady, you shouldn’t ask an author that. You don’t ask a parent which of their kids is their favorite, right?! They are all different and all special to us.
If someone was going to make your relationship into a movie, who would play whom?
Okay, if you would ask which actors would play our Club Indigo or The Quinn Quartet characters, we could give you a list, but we’ve never thought about this before. Let’s move on to the next question, maybe something will come up.
Which is the next book you are working on? Is it a series or a stand-alone book?
We have just released Conflicted (Club Indigo Book Seven) and are working on Finding Trouble (The Quinn Quartet Book Two) and a short story (free for our newsletter subscribers) we have to name yet.
How do you maintain that equilibrium between writing what you want and what your readers want?
Um, we don’t. We write for fun and we write the books we want to read. Apparently, there are also a lot of other readers who like to read them. Great. We love hearing from readers, reading their reviews and getting feedback, but first and foremost we write about what interest us and what we think hasn’t been written by somebody else before.
When were you first introduced to AllAuthor and how?
We have a great group of supportive romance authors gathered around us, like Maren Smith, Golden Angel, BJ Wane, Stevie MacFarlane, Renee Rose to name a few. We share tips, ideas, and occasionally critique each other’s work. We also help each other with finding great author and reader resources like AllAuthor, so while we can’t remember who exactly gave us the directions, we’re very glad we found the AllAuthor family and are proud to be a part of it.
