- How do we find out about you and your books?

The StarDust web site, of course, and I also have my own site and readers can check my blog as well. They can also join my Yahoo Group to find out about upcoming publications and where to access free stories!

- How may readers/fans contact you?

I have over 500 readers subscribed to my Yahoo Group and I get fan mail daily. I thoroughly enjoy hearing from readers and other aspiring writers and always (at least so far!) try to respond to every email personally.

- Do your fans' comments and letters influence you in any way?

Of course they do! Readers have their fingers on the pulse of my writing, and they are the ones who give me the best feedback… Did it work? Did it elicit the response I wanted? Did it move them, touch them, give them chills, made them cry or laugh out loud? It’s all great information, and I take it all in stride.

- Do you have a favorite comment or question from a reader?

This one came anonymously about my story, Connections, that was nominated for the 2006 Rauxa Prize (I was one of three runners-up, out of over 1,000 nominations!) I really cherish this comment: This story is touching and compelling, regardless of the erotic component. This is literature that happens to have an eroticism. A truly excellent story.

- Why did you decide to write romance novels?

My mother had so many romance novels she had to store them in under the bed boxes—under everyone’s bed, not just hers! They’ve been part of my reading repertoire since I was young. I cut my teeth on Jude Deveraux and Kathleen Woodiwiss! Romance reading is a lot of fun, and romance writing is a lot of fun as well. It’s not the only thing I write, but I do enjoy it.

- How much of your personality and life experiences are in your writing?

There’s a part of me in every character I write (even the villains!) but none of them are completely autobiographical, and I’m sure that’s the case for most writers. You can’t help putting something of yourself into your characters, but only the people closest to me would really be able to pick out the true pieces of “me” in every character I write about.

- When did you first think about writing and what prompted you to submit your first ms?

I’ve been writing since I could pick up a crayon! I completed my first novel-length piece when I was twelve, writing longhand in steno notebooks. (I still have them!) My first real “novel” was written on an old Royal typewriter—the kind with metal keys and a double cloth ribbon—when I was fourteen. I still have that too—the novel, not the typewriter! I submitted lots of things into contests in high school and college (and won a lot of awards) but got away from writing after I had children. Now that they’re getting older, I decided to try my hand at it again. I’m very competitive, so competitions are always a great motivation for me. When I entered the StarDust Christmas contest, I ended up winning a publishing contract… and here I am!

- Generally, how long does it take you to write a book?

It depends. I can write very quickly when things are flowing well. But I entered Nano this year (the National Novel Writing Competition—the goal is to write 50,000 words in the month of November!) and I got stuck! I just couldn’t seem to concentrate on writing the novel I had intended to write—so I ended up writing a lot of other things instead! I probably wrote 50,000 words, they just weren’t that novel. So often it just has to be the right story, and things will flow again.

- Do you have a set schedule for writing or do you just go with the flow?

I write every single weekday, and if I miss a day (because I’m deathly ill or something) I get grouchy and out-of-sorts. I often take the weekends off to spend with my hard-working husband, and of course don’t usually write on holidays or birthdays (unless I’ve really been bitten by a writing bug… then, watch out, because I won’t even stop to eat or make dinner or go to the bathroom!)

- What about your family, do they know not to bother you when you are writing - or are there constant interruptions?

I usually write in the midst of chaos. I have four children, two dogs, two cats, and a husband—there is very little quiet time around our house! But I’m very good at tuning into what I need to in the moment, and if that fails, I slap on some headphones and listen to music while I write! The kids will come poke me in the side if they need something… like, if someone is bleeding or on fire. Just kidding!

- What do you do to relax and recharge your batteries?

Read! No surprise there, right? I’m an introvert and really need quiet time to recharge. I’m surrounded by people pretty much all day long, so a long, hot bubble bath at night with a good book is pure heaven and does wonders for turning my red light to green again!

- Where do your ideas come from?

The planet Neptune. Don’t yours? Just kidding! My ideas come from a million different places, like any writers. Life experiences, situations, snippets of conversations, dreams. I never know where an idea is going to come from, but I always know when it’s one I need to follow if it keeps recurring. If it disappears, it wasn’t a “good” idea, for me. But if it keeps coming back, I know I have to write it. I don’t keep a notebook of ideas, like a lot of writers, for that reason. I know that if I need to write about it, it’s going to come back to me eventually, and I’ll end up putting it down on the page.

- Do you feel humour is important in women's fiction and why?

I feel humor is important in any fiction, if it’s appropriate to the story. I love reading wry, sarcastic characters, and am delighted when they show up in my fiction, as well! I also love situational humor, when characters get themselves into embarrassing or funny situations that they have to talk their way out of or through. For me, if the humor is too heavy-handed or overly obvious, I have a hard time staying with the story, but I enjoy subtle humor. It has to be done with a delicate touch for me to really enjoy it, and I find the same with writing it. If I try to be funny, it usually falls flat, but if I just let my characters have fun, it usually ends up being amusing without my really even trying!

- What are your thoughts on love scenes in romance novels, do you find them difficult to write?

For me, the love scenes are the easiest to write! The passion and connection that builds between two characters and culminates in a love scene is the very best part of writing erotic romances. It never gets boring or mundane for me, because every character is unique, and their reactions are never the same. I find it fascinating to explore the different facets of sexuality and human response with the characters that happen to grace me with their presence through my work.

- What kind of research do you do?

I have a confession to make… I hate research. I’ll do it if I have to, but in those cases, Wikipedia is my best friend! I have a lot of general base knowledge, which is helpful, and don’t have to do a lot of research for most of what I write. It’s one of the reasons I like reading historical fiction, but I don’t like writing it—all the danged research!

- Would you like to write a different genre than you do now, or sub-genre?

I love reading horror novels. One of these days, I’ll get back to writing it again! I’m sure I could write an erotic romantic horror novel that didn’t involved werewolves or vampires if I put my mind to it! (And I love a challenge!)

- What does your husband think of your writing?

My husband is the most supportive man in the world and my biggest fan. He thinks I’m the best thing that happened to writing since sliced bread, which is wonderful for my ego, I admit.

- Do you ever ask him for advice?

He’s not only my biggest fan—he’s also my best critic. I’ve rarely met a person so able to pinpoint the very thing missing or wrong or just slightly “off” in a story. He gets personal readings, daily, of what I write. We both enjoy that part of our day!

- Please tell us about yourself (family, hobbies, education, etc.)

I’m in my mid-thirties, and I have a husband and four children. We live with our two dogs and two cats in the Midwestern suburban United States. I have a bachelors degree in English and a Masters degree in counseling psychology. In addition to writing, I enjoy photography, bellydancing, singing and drum circles.

- Fill in the blank favorites -

Dessert: Elias Brother’s Hot Fudge Ice Cream Cake—ah, childhood memories!
City: I hate cities… too dirty and crowded. I’d rather be in the middle of nowhere than in the city…
Season: Autumn… cool weather, the changing fall colors, cider and donuts and hayrides…
Type of hero: Alpha males… love a man with a dominant streak…
Type of heroine: Feisty, but with a desire to surrender underneath that attitude…

- Who, if anyone, has influenced your writing?

Strangely—Stephen King. There’s a description in Stephen King’s book, On Writing, is the closest I’ve ever come to describing the way that I write. He says that he doesn’t so much write a story as uncover it. That’s always been my experience as well. I’m not a planner or an outliner. I don’t create stories—I unearth them. Most of the time, when I write, I feel as if I’m an archeologist, clearing away the debris to discover the treasure underneath. I find out where the story is going in the same way my readers do, by following my characters to the end. In Christmas Stalking, for example, I was completely unaware of Ginny’s history and the reason she was homeless, until I started writing, and things just began to come out. That’s the way it happens, most of the time, when I begin to write. My characters come to life and begin to do things all on their own. I’ve come to an ending I didn’t expect at all, simply because my characters went off and did things I didn’t plan.

- Among your own books, have you a favorite book? Favorite hero or heroine?

The Real Mother Goose, which will be coming from StarDust some time next year, is one of my favorites. “Mother” is one of my all-time favorite characters. She’s just delightfully complicated and interesting!

- If you weren't writing, what would you be doing?

Delivering babies as a midwife. I may still do it, some day. Right now, my children are too young for me to live a life “on-call.” I can write in my own time, on my own schedule, and that works well for me right now.

- Are there any words of encouragement for unpublished writers?

Write. Keep writing. Pay attention to feedback, the good and the bad. Especially the bad. Don’t stop writing. Even when you feel like what you’re writing sucks, don’t stop writing. It’s like practicing any instrument, you need to keep doing it to get better. Read other writers that you admire. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and if you need to write like your “favorite writer” until you find your own style, that’s okay, too. Your own voice will eventually emerge. Just keep writing. The poet, William Stafford, once said in an interview that he wrote a poem every single day of his life. “But how do you manage to do that? I could never write a poem a day!” the interviewer said in awe. Stafford looked at him and replied, “Lower your standards.” You don’t have to write perfectly… you just have to keep writing. Perfecting your writing happens during the editing process. The actual writing process is more like dancing or singing or painting or playing the guitar… you just keep doing it until it becomes effortless, like second nature to you. Then you won’t have to think about it anymore, you’ll just do it, and you’ll want to keep doing it. That’s when you’ll know you’re really “a writer.”

- What question would you love to answer that I didn't ask?

I don’t know… but the answer is “a chicken, two crayons, a Slim-Jim and fifteen light bulbs,” whatever it was!

Thank you very much for taking the time with us, for giving us insight into your writing, 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 StarDust and your talented imagination!

Yours in good reading,
Rose!

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