The guest author for today on Interviews with Dante is Karen Docter. She is a writer of Contemporary and Romantic suspense. Her latest work Cop On Her Doorstep is the first in the True Love In Uniform series.
Please tell us a little about yourself.
Let me step into my P.A. (promotional assistant) body for a moment so that I don’t sound full of myself. :)
Karen/K.L. Docter is a bestselling award-winning author, a four-time Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® finalist, and won the coveted Kiss of Death Romance Writers Daphne du Maurier Award Category (Series) Romantic Mystery Unpublished division.
When she's not saving her characters from death and destruction or helping them to fall in love, she loves camping and fishing with her family, reading, gardening & cooking. If she can do any of those things over a campfire, all the better! FMI: http://www.karendocter.com
Okay, so that still sounds big-headed but it might help to know that I’m sitting here in my jammies and slippers, my hair pulled up in a clip, no makeup and working on my second quart jar of iced coffee. I take my coffee seriously! Just ask anyone who knows me. Flavored coffee and books, that’s me.
I sit at my computer about 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Wish it was all pure writing time but, alas, it’s not. My dream vacation is me and my laptop writing on a lanai in Maui for three months...with room service. Nothing wrong with my dream machine!
Tell us about your latest book.
I’ve just launched the first book in my new True Love in Uniform series, a contemporary romance called COP ON HER DOORSTEP. The heroine’s husband was killed by S.W.A.T. six years before the story begins. Carrie Padilla has spent long hours at work rebuilding a life for herself and her son. The little time she has at home is spent keeping her eight-year-old son out of trouble, but he is all too eager to try to be the man in the house. When a handsome cop shows up on her doorstep, her errant son in tow, Carrie's heart stutters. The sexy Italian cop sets off all kinds of bells in her system, and she knows there's only one thing she can do to save what is left of her family, her husband’s memory, and her heart...avoid her new neighbor at all costs.
S.W.A.T. officer Jake Stafani already lost one little boy to gang violence, the dead boy’s older brother is missing, and Jake's not about to let the same thing happen to a neighbor's son. He drags the youngster home only to discover much more than a passing interest in the boy's beautiful, but wary, mother. Forced to take a leave of absence after a bust goes awry, Jake can think of nothing better to occupy his time than to keep Carrie and her son safe, and locate the missing teen who holds the key to taking the gang off the streets, once and for all.
Jake doesn’t count on his stubborn, intriguing neighbor distracting him from his job, or the passion that flares between them. He doesn’t expect her amazing son to steal a piece of his heart. Jake is ready to risk everything for Carrie, body and soul. But it’s not all up to him. If their new love is to survive, Carrie will need to be strong enough to see the man's beating heart behind the badge, to look beyond the pain of her past, and decide that loving again is worth the risk.
What do you have coming out in the future?
I’m currently working on book two of the True Love In Uniform series, COP CRASHES THE WEDDING. The third book, COP TO THE RESCUE, is in the preliminary planning stages. I have approximately 24 possible book titles waiting in the queue to be written, so I have enough contemporary romance stories in my head to keep me busy for a while. :) I’m also working on the second book in my Thorne’s Thorns series as K.L. Docter.
Is your book a stand-alone or a series?
I write stand-alone books in both of my series. I want readers to pick up my stories anywhere in the series so they can find a HEA (Happily Ever After) at the end of each book. Each book in my True Love in Uniform series is about a police officer who lives in the fictional town of Riverton, Colorado. Someday, I’ll branch out into firefighters or other “uniform” heroes and heroines. Each book in my Thorne’s Thorns series is a stand-alone book about one of six foster brothers, the dangers that enter their lives and the women they come to love. Previous heroes and heroines might appear in cameos in subsequent books but the story is not about them.
Why romance and what makes your particular brand of romance special?
I love romance and believe there is a HEA out there for everyone. Sometimes we’re lucky enough to find it. Sometimes we aren’t lucky enough to meet that person. I try to help the couples in my stories to find their other half. I think it’s that surety that there is a romance out there for everyone that makes my stories special. The couple might fight falling in love but I show them that love is something worth fighting for, that their lives can’t be complete without each other.
Is romance the only genre that you write in or do you write in other genres? If so what other genres do you write in?
Romance underlies everything I write, but I do write in two romance sub-genres. My contemporaries are pure romance, while I give in to my suspense leanings when I write my romantic suspense books. Am I intrigued with the idea of writing outside the romance genre? Absolutely! I would love to write pure SciFi, for instance. There simply isn’t enough hours in a day.
Let me step into my P.A. (promotional assistant) body for a moment so that I don’t sound full of myself. :)
Karen/K.L. Docter is a bestselling award-winning author, a four-time Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® finalist, and won the coveted Kiss of Death Romance Writers Daphne du Maurier Award Category (Series) Romantic Mystery Unpublished division.
When she's not saving her characters from death and destruction or helping them to fall in love, she loves camping and fishing with her family, reading, gardening & cooking. If she can do any of those things over a campfire, all the better! FMI: http://www.karendocter.com
Okay, so that still sounds big-headed but it might help to know that I’m sitting here in my jammies and slippers, my hair pulled up in a clip, no makeup and working on my second quart jar of iced coffee. I take my coffee seriously! Just ask anyone who knows me. Flavored coffee and books, that’s me.
I sit at my computer about 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Wish it was all pure writing time but, alas, it’s not. My dream vacation is me and my laptop writing on a lanai in Maui for three months...with room service. Nothing wrong with my dream machine!
Tell us about your latest book.
I’ve just launched the first book in my new True Love in Uniform series, a contemporary romance called COP ON HER DOORSTEP. The heroine’s husband was killed by S.W.A.T. six years before the story begins. Carrie Padilla has spent long hours at work rebuilding a life for herself and her son. The little time she has at home is spent keeping her eight-year-old son out of trouble, but he is all too eager to try to be the man in the house. When a handsome cop shows up on her doorstep, her errant son in tow, Carrie's heart stutters. The sexy Italian cop sets off all kinds of bells in her system, and she knows there's only one thing she can do to save what is left of her family, her husband’s memory, and her heart...avoid her new neighbor at all costs.
S.W.A.T. officer Jake Stafani already lost one little boy to gang violence, the dead boy’s older brother is missing, and Jake's not about to let the same thing happen to a neighbor's son. He drags the youngster home only to discover much more than a passing interest in the boy's beautiful, but wary, mother. Forced to take a leave of absence after a bust goes awry, Jake can think of nothing better to occupy his time than to keep Carrie and her son safe, and locate the missing teen who holds the key to taking the gang off the streets, once and for all.
Jake doesn’t count on his stubborn, intriguing neighbor distracting him from his job, or the passion that flares between them. He doesn’t expect her amazing son to steal a piece of his heart. Jake is ready to risk everything for Carrie, body and soul. But it’s not all up to him. If their new love is to survive, Carrie will need to be strong enough to see the man's beating heart behind the badge, to look beyond the pain of her past, and decide that loving again is worth the risk.
What do you have coming out in the future?
I’m currently working on book two of the True Love In Uniform series, COP CRASHES THE WEDDING. The third book, COP TO THE RESCUE, is in the preliminary planning stages. I have approximately 24 possible book titles waiting in the queue to be written, so I have enough contemporary romance stories in my head to keep me busy for a while. :) I’m also working on the second book in my Thorne’s Thorns series as K.L. Docter.
Is your book a stand-alone or a series?
I write stand-alone books in both of my series. I want readers to pick up my stories anywhere in the series so they can find a HEA (Happily Ever After) at the end of each book. Each book in my True Love in Uniform series is about a police officer who lives in the fictional town of Riverton, Colorado. Someday, I’ll branch out into firefighters or other “uniform” heroes and heroines. Each book in my Thorne’s Thorns series is a stand-alone book about one of six foster brothers, the dangers that enter their lives and the women they come to love. Previous heroes and heroines might appear in cameos in subsequent books but the story is not about them.
Why romance and what makes your particular brand of romance special?
I love romance and believe there is a HEA out there for everyone. Sometimes we’re lucky enough to find it. Sometimes we aren’t lucky enough to meet that person. I try to help the couples in my stories to find their other half. I think it’s that surety that there is a romance out there for everyone that makes my stories special. The couple might fight falling in love but I show them that love is something worth fighting for, that their lives can’t be complete without each other.
Is romance the only genre that you write in or do you write in other genres? If so what other genres do you write in?
Romance underlies everything I write, but I do write in two romance sub-genres. My contemporaries are pure romance, while I give in to my suspense leanings when I write my romantic suspense books. Am I intrigued with the idea of writing outside the romance genre? Absolutely! I would love to write pure SciFi, for instance. There simply isn’t enough hours in a day.
In the six years since her husband was killed by S.W.A.T., Carrie Padilla has spent long hours at work, rebuilding a life for herself and her son. The little time she has at home is spent keeping her eight-year-old son out of trouble, but he is all too eager to try to be the man in the house. When a handsome cop shows up on her doorstep, her errant son in tow, Carrie's heart stutters. The sexy Italian cop sets off all kinds of bells in her system, and she knows there's only one thing she can do to save what is left of her family, her husband’s memory, and her heart...avoid her new neighbor at all costs.
S.W.A.T. officer Jake Stafani already lost one little boy to gang violence, the dead boy’s older brother is missing, and Jake's not about to let the same thing happen to a neighbor's son. He drags the youngster home only to discover much more than a passing interest in the boy's beautiful, but wary, mother. Forced to take a leave of absence after a bust goes awry, Jake can think of nothing better to occupy his time than to keep Carrie and her son safe, and locate the missing teen who holds the key to taking the gang off the streets, once and for all.
But Jake doesn’t count on his stubborn, intriguing neighbor distracting him from his job, or the passion that flares between them. He doesn’t expect her amazing son to steal a piece of his heart. Jake is ready to risk everything for Carrie, body and soul. But it’s not all up to him. If their new love is to survive, Carrie will need to be strong enough to see the man's beating heart behind the badge, to look beyond the pain of her past, and decide that loving again is worth the risk.
S.W.A.T. officer Jake Stafani already lost one little boy to gang violence, the dead boy’s older brother is missing, and Jake's not about to let the same thing happen to a neighbor's son. He drags the youngster home only to discover much more than a passing interest in the boy's beautiful, but wary, mother. Forced to take a leave of absence after a bust goes awry, Jake can think of nothing better to occupy his time than to keep Carrie and her son safe, and locate the missing teen who holds the key to taking the gang off the streets, once and for all.
But Jake doesn’t count on his stubborn, intriguing neighbor distracting him from his job, or the passion that flares between them. He doesn’t expect her amazing son to steal a piece of his heart. Jake is ready to risk everything for Carrie, body and soul. But it’s not all up to him. If their new love is to survive, Carrie will need to be strong enough to see the man's beating heart behind the badge, to look beyond the pain of her past, and decide that loving again is worth the risk.
From where do you draw your inspiration?
Everywhere. I may seem quiet when you put me in a room full of people but I’m watching everything, ferreting away little tidbits of characterization, mannerisms, speech patterns, etc. Yeah, I’m a real party animal! :) I get ideas from articles, conversations, television, radio, songs, etc. Once I get the kernel of an idea, it’s just a matter of time before I flesh out the rest of a story.
My contemporary romance, Satin Pleasures, was inspired by a real life event. Our family had moved to San Francisco right after the devastating earthquake in 1989 that collapsed bridges. One day, I had to cross the Bay to get to a writing meeting. There was a major accident that closed the bridge, and I was stuck in the middle with a fear of earthquakes and heights preying on my mind. I got through the next two hours watching the people around me, and what I saw is almost exactly what I describe in the first scene between the Dan and Tess. Of course, the h/h weren’t anywhere but in my head. But they were fully formed, their stories launched by the time I drove of that bridge.
I draw inspiration from so many places that I currently have over 70 contemporary and suspense books waiting in my TBW (to be written) file, with more added all the time.
Do you ever base your characters on real people in your life?
Since I pull characters and stories from all over, technically that answer is yes...and no. I do make it a point not to people my stories with anyone who would recognize themselves. We all share traits, but mix those traits up? The combinations are endless. None of my serial killers are real people in my life—thank goodness—but they, too, can have traits I’ve observed and twisted into something...more.
How have your real life experiences influenced your writing?
Who we are as a person today is influenced by everything we’ve experienced up to that point. One of the reasons why each writer is different and has their own style is that no two people will experience the same thing in the same way, so their approach to their writing will reflect those differences.
For instance, when I was ten years old, I decided I wanted to be a policeman after an incident in my neighborhood that made me very aware of the injustices in the world. Life experiences and my personality didn’t lead me down that path, but now I dispense justice in my romantic suspense novels.
How did you come up with the title of your book?
I love coming up with titles! They pop into my head out of nowhere, a comment someone makes, a news story, even out of something I read. My titles ground stories in my head. If I don’t know what it is, I simply can’t write the book. It’s that simple. Killing Secrets is about secrets. Secrets that are kept. Secrets that are revealed. Secrets that can kill. Catch That Santa is about a man and a woman chasing after their grandparents, one of which is dressed like Santa, who have run off to Las Vegas to get married. Satin Pleasures is a bit of an anomaly. The hero of that story was opening a new lingerie store called Satin Pleasures. I set that story aside for a while and, when I pulled it out to publish it, I discovered that there was actually a new online lingerie company with the same name. They’d trademarked it in the meantime. I had to change the name for Dan’s store in the book, but I was able to use the title because it was referring to the heroine’s love of satin. Cop On Her Doorstep is about a policeman showing up on the heroine’s doorstep where he’s not welcome. Cop Crashes The Wedding is about a policeman who arrests the heroine’s groom. In Cop To The Rescue, the policeman is also on a mountain rescue team and he saves the heroine when she’s abandoned in the mountains in a date gone wrong.
Do you read romance or do you prefer other genres?
I used to read a lot more than I do now. There simply isn’t enough time in my day. When I do have time, I read across the romance genres with the exception of inspirational or erotic. I also read outside romance, everything from Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler to Ayn Rand to Robert Heinlein and Isacc Asimov...and more.
Have you joined any writer’s groups?
I’ve been in a number of writers’ groups over the years. Romance Writers of America, RWA Pro, Colorado Romance Writers, Kiss of Death Romance Writers, From the Heart Romance Writers, The Golden Network, Sisters In Crime, Sisters In Crime-Colorado to name a few.
Everywhere. I may seem quiet when you put me in a room full of people but I’m watching everything, ferreting away little tidbits of characterization, mannerisms, speech patterns, etc. Yeah, I’m a real party animal! :) I get ideas from articles, conversations, television, radio, songs, etc. Once I get the kernel of an idea, it’s just a matter of time before I flesh out the rest of a story.
My contemporary romance, Satin Pleasures, was inspired by a real life event. Our family had moved to San Francisco right after the devastating earthquake in 1989 that collapsed bridges. One day, I had to cross the Bay to get to a writing meeting. There was a major accident that closed the bridge, and I was stuck in the middle with a fear of earthquakes and heights preying on my mind. I got through the next two hours watching the people around me, and what I saw is almost exactly what I describe in the first scene between the Dan and Tess. Of course, the h/h weren’t anywhere but in my head. But they were fully formed, their stories launched by the time I drove of that bridge.
I draw inspiration from so many places that I currently have over 70 contemporary and suspense books waiting in my TBW (to be written) file, with more added all the time.
Do you ever base your characters on real people in your life?
Since I pull characters and stories from all over, technically that answer is yes...and no. I do make it a point not to people my stories with anyone who would recognize themselves. We all share traits, but mix those traits up? The combinations are endless. None of my serial killers are real people in my life—thank goodness—but they, too, can have traits I’ve observed and twisted into something...more.
How have your real life experiences influenced your writing?
Who we are as a person today is influenced by everything we’ve experienced up to that point. One of the reasons why each writer is different and has their own style is that no two people will experience the same thing in the same way, so their approach to their writing will reflect those differences.
For instance, when I was ten years old, I decided I wanted to be a policeman after an incident in my neighborhood that made me very aware of the injustices in the world. Life experiences and my personality didn’t lead me down that path, but now I dispense justice in my romantic suspense novels.
How did you come up with the title of your book?
I love coming up with titles! They pop into my head out of nowhere, a comment someone makes, a news story, even out of something I read. My titles ground stories in my head. If I don’t know what it is, I simply can’t write the book. It’s that simple. Killing Secrets is about secrets. Secrets that are kept. Secrets that are revealed. Secrets that can kill. Catch That Santa is about a man and a woman chasing after their grandparents, one of which is dressed like Santa, who have run off to Las Vegas to get married. Satin Pleasures is a bit of an anomaly. The hero of that story was opening a new lingerie store called Satin Pleasures. I set that story aside for a while and, when I pulled it out to publish it, I discovered that there was actually a new online lingerie company with the same name. They’d trademarked it in the meantime. I had to change the name for Dan’s store in the book, but I was able to use the title because it was referring to the heroine’s love of satin. Cop On Her Doorstep is about a policeman showing up on the heroine’s doorstep where he’s not welcome. Cop Crashes The Wedding is about a policeman who arrests the heroine’s groom. In Cop To The Rescue, the policeman is also on a mountain rescue team and he saves the heroine when she’s abandoned in the mountains in a date gone wrong.
Do you read romance or do you prefer other genres?
I used to read a lot more than I do now. There simply isn’t enough time in my day. When I do have time, I read across the romance genres with the exception of inspirational or erotic. I also read outside romance, everything from Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler to Ayn Rand to Robert Heinlein and Isacc Asimov...and more.
Have you joined any writer’s groups?
I’ve been in a number of writers’ groups over the years. Romance Writers of America, RWA Pro, Colorado Romance Writers, Kiss of Death Romance Writers, From the Heart Romance Writers, The Golden Network, Sisters In Crime, Sisters In Crime-Colorado to name a few.
Some secrets are better left dead.
Rachel James’ ex-husband is released from prison determined to reclaim her and her little girl — the child is his key to controlling the James fortune. Frightened, Rachel flees to Denver with the child who hasn’t uttered a word since her daddy went to prison.
Contractor Patrick Thorne wants nothing to do with another of his parents’ charity cases. He failed his own wife so abysmally she took her own life as well as his unborn son’s. After two years, it’s time to concentrate on the bid he’s won and the saboteur trying to destroy his construction firm.
There is no room for trust in either of their hearts. But trust is all that will untangle the secrets that dominate their lives, free a little girl of her silent prison, and save them all from a serial killer who stands too close.
Rachel James’ ex-husband is released from prison determined to reclaim her and her little girl — the child is his key to controlling the James fortune. Frightened, Rachel flees to Denver with the child who hasn’t uttered a word since her daddy went to prison.
Contractor Patrick Thorne wants nothing to do with another of his parents’ charity cases. He failed his own wife so abysmally she took her own life as well as his unborn son’s. After two years, it’s time to concentrate on the bid he’s won and the saboteur trying to destroy his construction firm.
There is no room for trust in either of their hearts. But trust is all that will untangle the secrets that dominate their lives, free a little girl of her silent prison, and save them all from a serial killer who stands too close.
Have you won any awards for your writing?
I’ve won a number of awards over my career, which I’ve listed by novel on my website at http://www.karendocter.com/about/awards. I’m most proud of the Daphne du Maurier award, the four times I was a RWA Golden Heart finalist, and my two RomCon Reader Rated books where I achieved scores of 8.6 and 8.7 out of nine points from readers.
What is the hardest part of the writing process for you?
Editing. Not because I can’t edit. I was an editor in another life so I’m good at it. Too good, maybe. The hardest part of writing for me is to keep the Type-A editor inside me from bogging me down as I write. In other words, my internal editor has twelve inch talons embedded in my shoulder, and she just won’t shut up and let me write. She’s sitting here right now cleaning up this interview as I answer these questions, the cheeky thing!
I used to be a hardcore pantser (someone who writes by the seat of her pants). The more I learned about my craft, the bossier my editor became. I write a lot slower now because I’m reworking the same scene over and over until I feel like I can move on.
What is the easiest part of the writing process for you?
Conflict. I make my characters work for their HEA (Happily Ever After) in all of my books and, in the case of my suspense, I can be especially mean to my characters. Serial killers are not nice guys, you know! I love getting into the heads of all of my characters and make them as believable as possible. By the time I’m done with them, I know them like my best friends...even the villains. They become “real” to me, in other words.
Which of your characters is your favorite and why?
I tend to love all of my heroes, probably because some part of them fits the mold of what I admire most about men in real life. Their insights, strengths and weaknesses. Their protectiveness. Everything that makes men and women different. It’s fun to explore their psyches.
That said, I have to say the one character that is my favorite to date is the villain in Killing Secrets. He might be a twisted serial killer but he was tremendous fun to write. One of my favorite crime shows is Criminal Minds because it gets into the minds of serial killers and analyzes why they do the things they do. I find it intriguing to figure out why any character does what he or she does. Getting into the villain’s head though is downright scary and understanding him can be highly satisfying. This is why I write more psychological suspense than graphic description. I’m more focused on the why, not the how.
What is your preferred writing environment?
I finally have my office the way I like it. It’s in the walk-out basement so it has windows and southern exposure. I’ve painted it a beautiful Emperor’s Gold and surrounded myself with my collection of dragons and Asian paintings and screens. I smile every time I walk into the room. If it’s cloudy outside, I turn on my tract lighting and it feels like I’m sitting in sunshine.
When the weather’s nice—I don’t do HOT—I sit in the garden patio with my laptop, an easy thing to do now that I’ve got a docking station and am down to one computer. Of course, I have three monitors that are always turned on so I guess I didn’t trim down on my equipment. Which means I do my best writing outside…fewer distractions. :)
Do you have a careful plan when plotting your stories or do you just go with the flow?
What is your favorite quote?
The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play ~ Arnold Toynbee.
As a writer, I get to blend my work and my play. I love my job!
Wild Card Question.
As an author, what is the one question that you wish people would ask you, but no one ever has and what would your answer be to that question?
If you were able to do one thing that would impact positively on the society’s problems, what would it be?
I would teach everyone the art of communication. I believe most of the world’s social ills stems from miscommunication and ignorance. If we communicated better, our decisions and viewpoints would be based more on fact than conjecture and wishful thinking. I have no illusions we can resolve all of society’s ills but too many people form opinions and make decisions on bad or little information.
I write romance because I believe it is one of the most important relationships we build as human beings. Getting to know someone intimately enough to fall in love with them takes work and communication and caring, and we all deserve that in our lives.
I’ve won a number of awards over my career, which I’ve listed by novel on my website at http://www.karendocter.com/about/awards. I’m most proud of the Daphne du Maurier award, the four times I was a RWA Golden Heart finalist, and my two RomCon Reader Rated books where I achieved scores of 8.6 and 8.7 out of nine points from readers.
What is the hardest part of the writing process for you?
Editing. Not because I can’t edit. I was an editor in another life so I’m good at it. Too good, maybe. The hardest part of writing for me is to keep the Type-A editor inside me from bogging me down as I write. In other words, my internal editor has twelve inch talons embedded in my shoulder, and she just won’t shut up and let me write. She’s sitting here right now cleaning up this interview as I answer these questions, the cheeky thing!
I used to be a hardcore pantser (someone who writes by the seat of her pants). The more I learned about my craft, the bossier my editor became. I write a lot slower now because I’m reworking the same scene over and over until I feel like I can move on.
What is the easiest part of the writing process for you?
Conflict. I make my characters work for their HEA (Happily Ever After) in all of my books and, in the case of my suspense, I can be especially mean to my characters. Serial killers are not nice guys, you know! I love getting into the heads of all of my characters and make them as believable as possible. By the time I’m done with them, I know them like my best friends...even the villains. They become “real” to me, in other words.
Which of your characters is your favorite and why?
I tend to love all of my heroes, probably because some part of them fits the mold of what I admire most about men in real life. Their insights, strengths and weaknesses. Their protectiveness. Everything that makes men and women different. It’s fun to explore their psyches.
That said, I have to say the one character that is my favorite to date is the villain in Killing Secrets. He might be a twisted serial killer but he was tremendous fun to write. One of my favorite crime shows is Criminal Minds because it gets into the minds of serial killers and analyzes why they do the things they do. I find it intriguing to figure out why any character does what he or she does. Getting into the villain’s head though is downright scary and understanding him can be highly satisfying. This is why I write more psychological suspense than graphic description. I’m more focused on the why, not the how.
What is your preferred writing environment?
I finally have my office the way I like it. It’s in the walk-out basement so it has windows and southern exposure. I’ve painted it a beautiful Emperor’s Gold and surrounded myself with my collection of dragons and Asian paintings and screens. I smile every time I walk into the room. If it’s cloudy outside, I turn on my tract lighting and it feels like I’m sitting in sunshine.
When the weather’s nice—I don’t do HOT—I sit in the garden patio with my laptop, an easy thing to do now that I’ve got a docking station and am down to one computer. Of course, I have three monitors that are always turned on so I guess I didn’t trim down on my equipment. Which means I do my best writing outside…fewer distractions. :)
Do you have a careful plan when plotting your stories or do you just go with the flow?
What is your favorite quote?
The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play ~ Arnold Toynbee.
As a writer, I get to blend my work and my play. I love my job!
Wild Card Question.
As an author, what is the one question that you wish people would ask you, but no one ever has and what would your answer be to that question?
If you were able to do one thing that would impact positively on the society’s problems, what would it be?
I would teach everyone the art of communication. I believe most of the world’s social ills stems from miscommunication and ignorance. If we communicated better, our decisions and viewpoints would be based more on fact than conjecture and wishful thinking. I have no illusions we can resolve all of society’s ills but too many people form opinions and make decisions on bad or little information.
I write romance because I believe it is one of the most important relationships we build as human beings. Getting to know someone intimately enough to fall in love with them takes work and communication and caring, and we all deserve that in our lives.
Thanks so much for having me. I hope you all stop by to say “Hi” sometime. I love hearing from readers. Find all of my books and social media sites on my website/blog
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