Q. When did you start writing?
A. I have been writing for my own enjoyment for years. I have a mountain of unfinished stories fading into oblivion on jotter pads, mostly historical romance, but life and reality kept getting in the way.
I always loved reading historical romance but couldn’t let go of reality enough to write it. How would a marauding Viking smell after a month at sea? That’s what I kept tripping up on; I just couldn’t get past it. The idea of getting down and dirty with someone who hadn’t mastered the basics of personal hygiene was too much.
Then I read my first Ménage and I was hooked. The Kelly boys came to life and demanded I write their story. They took up so much space in my head that I had to write to let them out.
Q. Where did the inspiration come from for Good Horses, Fast Cars and Real Men?
A. I have been privileged to share my life with some pretty amazing horses over the years and my life is so much richer for that. Same with the cars, there is just something about driving way too fast that lets you escape and live in the minute, the heady feeling of having all that power right there for the taking. But the men are central to this story. Nate stole my heart, Brett took over my dark little fantasies and Matt made me want to howl at the moon. Naked. They’re larger than life, not perfect, but pretty damn close. If only they were real!
There’s a fair bit of me in Jade. It was a chance to explore what ifs and maybes in a way that meshed with reality. I had to keep it real. Perhaps one day I’ll let go of that and write something really out there but not yet.
Q. What can’t you do without?
A. Coffee, spell-check, my Toby Keith play list, my loving man and the latest Laurell K Hamilton book. Oh, and the ferals’.
Q. Do you have more works on the way?
A. Yes. I hope you will all be meeting the hard lovin’ men of Liberty Springs very soon, and some strong, sassy, bad-ass heroines who won’t submit to anything outside of the bedroom. There are no helpless little ladies in my books. That makes it so much more fun to write. It takes a hell of a man to tame my girls, usually more than one.
Q. What do you do to escape the pressures of life and writing?
A. Grab a bridle and catch a horse. Riding makes me forget about everything. The bigger the problem, the harder I ride. If it is raining or dark, my better half hides before I get any other ideas.
Q. What is your favorite thing about writing?
A. It is just like reading except that you’re in control of the plot, or in my case the characters are. I start with an outline, just general milestones, but good characters grab the bit and run. I never know quite where we are going to end up when that happens.
Q. Favorite piece of advice to aspiring writers?
A. Just do it. When I finished ‘Good Horses’, I must have sat there with my finger hovering over the send button for hours before I said “F#*k it!” and pushed the damn thing. It takes guts, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.
