Interview with Author Erin Kern:
Hi Erin. Thank you for doing this interview. I would like to welcome you to the Romance at Heart Interview and Author Grilling session. *bg* We are interested to find out as much about you as we possibly can, so lets get started...
- Please tell us about your latest book.
Looking For Trouble is actually the beginning of a series that follows the McDermott brothers and their two step-siblings. Looking For Trouble starts with Noah, who’s the oldest. He owns his own construction company and has been plagued with incompetent office managers. He needs someone to run his office for him and keep his work space organized and professional looking. Unfortunately for him he’s going through employees at a rapid rate and needs someone fast.
Avery Price came from a world where everything was provided for her. She had money, and all the opportunity a girl could want. Then everything in her pristine world came to a screeching halt when she discovered her fiancé cheating on her. With her parents still encouraging her to marry the man, Avery feels suffocated and betrayed. She leaves her posh world and winds up in Trouble, Wyoming. Her first order of business in her new home is to find a job. While in the process of that she runs over an unsuspecting Noah who is, for lack of a better term, pissed off. The two of them don’t hit it off but Avery manages to finagle her way into Noah’s office as his new manager. They try to fight their attraction to each other while working together. At the same time Avery has to dodge the cheating fiancé who can’t take a hint. Noah, who suspects Avery has secrets, tries to figure out who the real Avery Price is and where she really comes from.
- How do we find out about you and your books?
I have a blog that I post on a few times a week, www.erinleighkern.blogspot.com. There readers can read blurbs, see release dates, cover photos and use the purchase links.
- Do you allow readers to contact you? If so, how do they reach you?
I love to hear from readers! I constantly check my e-mail all day. It’s, erinkern@ymail.com.
- Why did you decide to write romance novels?
I love to read romance more than anything else! So naturally I love to write it. Personally, I find it the easiest to write and the most fun. I love creating my own irresistible heros who go head-to-head with an independent woman.
- How much of your personality and life experiences are in your writing?
People always say to write what you know. I always take little snippets of my own experiences or those of people I know and weave them into a story. I will also take personality traits of several family members and combine them into one character. Some of my characters are loosely based on people in my life.
- Generally, how long does it take you to write a book?
I’m a stay at home mother of two small kids. I try to squeeze in at least two hours of writing a day. Naturally with kids, things come up and I get pulled in a thousand different directions. My newest release, Looking For Trouble took me over a year to write. I was pregnant at the time and had a difficult pregnancy, so I wasn’t able to write at a normal pace. Usually I can get a full novel written in 3-4 months.
- Do you have a set schedule for writing or do you just go with the flow?
There’s no such thing as a set schedule with kids! My most productive hours are when my son is napping and my daughter is in school. Between the hours of 11 am and 2pm is when I get the most writing done. I write 5 days a week and take weekends off for family time.
- What are your thoughts on love scenes in romance novels, do you find them difficult to write?
A good love scene is a great way to show the chemistry between the H/h and help the reader better connect with them. I like mine tasteful, not too explicit and not so often that it’s just unrealistic. Love scenes can be difficult to write so that they aren’t tacky, cheesy or profane. When I start mine, I’ll write only a few lines at a time then add to it later. It can sometimes take me several days to write an entire love scene.
- Would you like to write a different genre than you do now, or sub-genre?
Well, a lot of authors veer to a sub-genre like historical or paranormal. While I enjoy reading some of those every once in a while, my heart will always belong to contemporary.
- Do you ever ask him/her for advice?
I always ask my husband for advice. He’ll give me suggestions on where to take a storyline that didn’t even occur to me. He also helps me better understand that mysterious male mind.
- Do you have a favorite author? Favorite book?
That’s a tough one to answer. I have several authors who are on my must buy list. I’d probably have to go with Linda Howard. I will often pick up one of her books without even reading the blurb. My favorite book would have to be Ms. Howard’s Cry No More. I read it in one day!
- Who are some of your other favorite authors and genres to read?
Some of my other favorites would include, Rachel Gibson, Lori Foster, Cindy Gerard, Susan Anderson and Susan Mallery. Of course there are lots of other but those are my top favorites. I love a good romantic suspense/military. Every once in a while I pick up a paranormal suspense. Erin McCarthy is great at these.
- What do you think of critique groups in general?
If I could give one piece of advice to an aspiring author it would be to find a good critique group. I joined mine 6 years ago and they are my backbone. I would not be the writer I am today without them, in fact I may not event still be writing. I wrote a dedication to them in Looking For Trouble,
- Do you think critique groups are a necessity to becoming a good writer?
They’re definitely a valuable asset. One can turn out a good novel without one, but it always helps to have an unbiased opinion from different point of views. Plus other members always have good pointers, resources, and often bring up suggestions you may not have thought of when writing the book.
- Where do you see yourself in five years?
Publishing my gazillionth book!
- Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Heck No! Up until I graduated college I hated to write. It was always a boring, tedious task that I had to force my way through. Then I discovered romance novels and the rest, as they say, is history.
- How many books have you written, and how many of those have been published?
I’m working on my fourth, but I’ve published one.
- Which comes first, the story, the characters or the setting?
Usually the characters. A few will pop into my head then certain scenes or scenarios will start to form around the people. I rarely know the whole story start to finish before I start writing.
- What part of a book has been the easiest to write? The hardest?
The beginning is always the easiest for me. By time I sit down, the whole opening scene is in my head word for word. For the most part the end, or chapters leading up to the end are the hardest. I always have those points toward the end of the book where I stop and think, “Okay now what?” It will sometimes take me several weeks to pick up where I left off.
- What are the elements of a great romance for you?
You can’t have a good romance without sexual tension. If the H/h aren’t drawn to each other then what’s the point? There also needs to be elements of mystery between the two love interests. They need an opportunity to learn about each other and peel back the layers of their inner workings. Without that, they come off as one dimensional and not believable.
- Are you in control of your characters or do they control you?
I am never in control of my characters. I try to be and tell myself I am but they always take on a life of their own and steer the story in other directions.
- Have you experienced writer's block---> If so, how did you work through it?
I went through a particularly bad case of writer’s block with Looking For Trouble. That’s the whole pregnancy thing I talked about before. The book sat on my hard drive for 6-7 months without being touched at all. After my son was born I forced myself to finish it. My two previous manuscripts sat unpublished on my hard drive and I didn’t want another round of hard work to go unfinished.
- If you weren't writing, what would you be doing?
Having tea parties with my daughter’s stuffed animals and tossing a baseball to my son. Of course I do those things anyway!
- Are there any words of encouragement for unpublished writers?
Never stop writing. Think of every word you right as practice. The more you write, the better you’ll be at it. Think of it this way: if every author gave up after getting rejected, there’d be no books!
Thank you very much for taking the time with us and answering our questions. I really appreciate this interruption to your busy schedule. Good Luck, and we will be looking forward to the next delightful creation from your talented imagination!
Yours in good reading,
Rose!
Author Links:
Blog Email Facebook Facebook Fan Page
Groups/Newsletters: the critter vineyard, 3Ssofromance, the literary world (all romance)
RaH Links:
Review Coming
Purchase Links:
Buy Erin's Books at Amazon
Buy Erin's Books at SmashWords