So Nancy, when you were little, what did you want to be when you "grew up?"
A writer. And Mrs. Davy Jones of the Monkees.
I loved Davy Jones! One of my favorite Brady Bunch episodes was the one that he guest starred in as the crush of (naturally) Marsha. And at what point in your life did you realized that being an author was no longer going to be just a dream but a career you were going to turn into reality?
When I got that call from Carin Ritter at Zebra Books asking to buy my first book, Sweet Tempest and she asked what else I could send her.
Do you have any ‘rituals’ you go through before you write?
I have to have the perfect opening line. I can’t start a book until I’m ready to set that hook.
What was your favorite chapter (or part) of Prince of Shadows to write and why?
There were a lot of action scenes since my hero is a warrior prince, and I always love writing those. Maybe I’d become a fight choreographer in another life. The entire book was so much fun, I just couldn’t let it go . . . and ended up having to cut out about 125 pages to meet the word count. I’ll use some of them on my website as extra content.
How did you come up with the title?
It had to go with of Shadows and my hero is a prince in the House of Terriot. I do wish I’d known Cassandra Clare was going to use the same title for one of the books in her series.
What would YOU like your readers to know about this book or you in general?
Though PRINCE OF SHADOWS is part of a series, Book 8 to be exact, it stands on its own, so if you haven’t read the earlier books, you won’t be lost. But be warned, once you read it, you’ll want to go get them. What can a reader expect? I’ll let a couple of my reviewers sum it up:
“He-ll-oo sexy shifter romance—why haven’t I met you before?? Pure unadulterated romance with a sizzling Romeo and Juliet plotline. I mightily enjoyed this book. You don’t usually see the hot alpha stud as the more romantic one in a paranormal pair, so I liked that different perspective. What a smorgasbord of shifter hotness!” – The Urban Book Thief
“Told in Gideon’s unique manner, serving up tortured and spine tingling alpha male, PRINCE OF SHADOWS transcends the paranormal with a gripping love story. Another amazing addition to the Moonlight series. 5 Stars!” – Readaholics AnonymousWhat's one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors?
Get it done THEN revise. Don’t pick at it until you’ve got the book finished . . . or you may never get it finished.
That's excellent advice! Do you have a favorite author?
Dean Koontz. I always travel with one of his books. Justin Cronin is getting up there with his post-apocalyptic vampire series.
What is your favorite quote?
“Never, never, never, never give up!” Good enough for Churchill, good enough for me. And, AC/DC’s “It’s a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll.” That’s my personal mantra.
What genre of books do you read for pleasure?
I love suspense. That’s why I try to sneak a little bit of it into all my books.
What’s the most amusing thing that’s ever happened to you?
When I was on a Canadian vacay with some of my critique partners, a couple of us decided to go swimming. The water was really rough and we were warned the shallows were ‘rocky’. Didn’t know that meant big slippery boulders! After easing out to about waist level, I lost my footing and got knocked over by a wave. One of my friends came dashing out, certain I was drowning but I was actually laughing so hard, thinking “Whale on the beach!” that I couldn’t get up. I’ll never forget the look on her face. She wasn’t amused. That’s a real friend.
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Think about what I could be writing next. Actually, I work full time as a legal assistant so there isn’t a lot of free time to go around. I enjoy my five-year-old grandson and feed that Netflix addiction.
If all TV shows were real, what show (all time) would you most like to live in?
Mayberry RFD. Wouldn’t it be great if life was really that simple? And you had an Aunt Bea?
Party dress or blue jeans? I always go for comfort but I’ve been known to rock a party dress at conference time.
Plotter or Panster? Rabid OCD plotter with pants on fire.
Print or e-Book? I read both. I write both. I love One Click.
Coastal walks or extreme sports? New knee. Walking. Extreme stuff will have to wait. Extreme being like really high curbs.
Cookies or cupcakes? Not much of a sweet eater (give me a salt lick any day!) but I do like bakery cookies, preferably NOT chocolate.
Super hero or super villain? I like the bad boys.
If I had a free afternoon I’d . . .Take in some Vitamin D therapy on my balcony with my iPod and plot.
Peanut Butter: Crunchy, Creamy, or I hate peanut butter and am addicted to Nutella. Crunchy!
You suddenly realize you live in a haunted house. Do you:
- Run screaming for the door
- Bravely go to a church, load up on holy water and try to get rid of the ghost
- Set up ghost hunting equipment to capture phenomenon
- Call in the Ghost Adventures crew so that you can ogle the lead guy Zac’s amazingly stiff hair when you’re not ogling his . . . physical attributes
- Deny you have a ghost and just let it scare the bejesus out of your visitors.
Tell us five random facts about yourself?
- Since I can’t wear cool shoes or Abercrombie & Fitch, I’m a bling-aholic. I always pick up a unique piece of jewelry when I travel.
- I love to work out – it’s the getting me there that’s the hard part.
- I’m a soft touch for anything fur, fin or feather.
- I enjoy leftovers served cold.
- I’m an action/adventure and martial arts movie junkie. Probably because I only have sons.
#8 in the By Moonlight Series
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Held hostage until she chooses a mate, Kendra Terriot must play a careful courtship game when choosing among the dangerous Shifter heirs. As a prince in the House of Terriot, Cale knows he can be the leader his clan needs with Kendra at his side, but first he must learn to become the kind of man she desires. In a treacherous race for the crown, where weakness means death, the only way to win her trust could mean surrendering his throne. But the only way to win her heart could mean letting her go…
Under her own name, she's a bestseller for Silhouette Romantic Suspense, has written an award-winning vampire romance series, and has an eight book shape-shifter series with Pocket Books. Also listed on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB), she collaborated on Indie horror films In the Woods and Savage with screenwriting and ADR script credits, and even played a small role.
Writing historical romance as Dana Ransom, she's a "Career Achievement for Historical Adventure" and "K.I.S.S." award winner with books published in Romanian, Italian, Russian, Danish, Dutch, Portuguese, French, German, Icelandic and Chinese.
As Rosalyn West, she's a HOLT Medallion winner with nominations for "Best North American Historical Romance" and "Best Historical Book in a Series."
A prolific writer, Gideon attributes her creative output, which once peaked at seven novels in one year, to her love of history and a gift for storytelling. She also credits the discipline learned through a background in journalism and OCD. The due date for her third book and her second son were on the same day . . . and both were early! When on deadline, she turns on the laptop between 4:30 and 5:00 a.m. to get a chapter in before work.
Thanks for the invite to sip coffee and talk books!
ReplyDeleteI'm excited to have you here at the Cafe today Nancy - Its always a party wherever you go!
ReplyDeleteWonderful interview Nancy! I love to always learn more about my favorite authors! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat interview. Love your advice to aspiring authors. I have to say, though, I do revise as I go. But I do finish the book. LOL Wishing you the best on this new book.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview! But now I have the lyrics to "Daydream Believer" going through my head, and I'm revising my lifetime goals to include "Write Seven Novels in One Year!" :)
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