Which is your favorite childhood memory?
When I was 9, I wrote a story about a mouse stowing away on Apollo 11 because he thought the moon was made of green cheese. I think there was a tiny mouse spacesuit involved. I wrote"The Mouse who Went to the Moon" in pencil and illustrated it in crayon. My Mom praised that story to the sky, and I was hooked.
Who introduced you to the world of books?
My mom. She took my sister and me to the Bookmobile when it came into our neighborhood. I loved that thing. I remember checking out Jane Eyre., among others, and reading all summer.
Your thoughts on conventional vs. self-publishing? What route did you choose and why?
I was trad published with Penguin Putnam-- even hit the NYTimes bestseller list four times -- until my publisher decided they didn’t want to publish paranormal anymore. (They later reversed that.) I tried self publishing, but I found the cost prohibitive. Good editing is not cheap. So I started publishing with Changeling Press, for which I am also an editor and cover artist.
What's the difference between 'general romance' and 'paranormal romance'?
Paranormal romance always involves magical or psychic elements and world building. General romance takes place in our universe, whether in the past or present. As a writer, it’s the pleasure of world building that I really enjoy — how would society or science be different in a world with magic? How would politics be different? I love that stuff. Paranormal also lets me comment on modern life in a way I couldn’t in general romance without seeming preachy.
Who inspired the character of Raven In your current book, “Raven’s Song”?
Raven first appeared in Arcane Island, a book about a guy who shares a magical link with a tiger and the witch he falls in love with. Dave and his heroine, Ariel, are competing on a magical reality show, and Raven is their teammate. Raven can work magic by singing, which lets her influence people’s emotion and behavior. She’s deeply afraid of the hero because she was attacked and almost killed by a guy with a magical tiger while shooting a music video decades before. She’s based on a cross between Madonna and Sarah McLachlan, and she’s a huge rock star. I knew her bodyguard saved her from the tiger all those years before. I loved the character, so I decided I would write her story. It’s set in 1994, when Raven is 30. Besides the tiger guy, she’s being stalked by her psychotic rock singer ex, who is violently jealous of her success.
Her bodyguard hero can also channel magic, but he can do it through martial arts. I’m finishing that book now. It should be out in October or so.
How does it feel to have published more than a quarter century of books?
It’s a bit mind blowing, actually. The ideas that I’ve written 57 novels and novels is pretty amazing. Especially since I was over 40 before I finished a book. I started a TON of them, I just didn’t finish them. From the time I was nine, I always had a book going. When I was a kid, it was usually about a horse. As an adult, it was always a romance.
What are some things you did to understand and perfect the craft of writing?
I read a TON of books on writing, and still do. I’m always looking for new strategies and techniques. I teach writing— that was a BIG one. When you teach a class, you have to take the writing process apart and really think about how you do this. It helps you understand what works and what doesn’t. I also critique other people’s writing, which helps me see what they do wrong and right. I suggest that every writer find a critique partner. You need other writers to talk to, in order to learn the process of writing. And it helps you feel less alone and weird. I may be the only writer in my South Carolina city right now.
Do you write books in chronological order, i.e. from start to finish?
Yeah. I simply can’t write out of order. I’m too ADHD. I’d get lost.
If you ever get writer’s block, where do you go to overcome it, or what activities help you overcome it?
I get writer’s block with every single book. I always, always get it with the climax, because I have to find a new and exciting way for the heroes to win. To overcome it, the best thing is to take my phone and walk for three miles or so, just recording whatever comes out of my mouth. I think the subconscious mind KNOWS what you need to do, but you have to get that knowledge to surface. The best way is to talk the plot out to yourself until you hear the solution come out of your mouth.
As a writer producing a work of fiction, do you tend to know the ending when you start, or do you find out as you write?
I plot my stories, but figuring out the details is sometimes very tough.
What should every aspiring writer know about writing?
Never start rewriting until you finish the first draft. When I was first starting out, I’d rewrite the first chapter to death until I got sick of the book. I killed thirty or forty books that way.
What kind of audience do you hope to appeal to with your books?
People who love wild, mind-blowing ideas and sexy, dangerous heroe with heroines who just don't back down.
When did you join AllAuthor and what are your opinions about the website so far?
I like the site a lot. I plan to take more advantage of it in the future.
