Author of the Week - Mardi Maxwell

Welcome back to Buy a Book, Tell a Friend!

This week Mardi Maxwell visits the blog. I met Mardi online when she and connected about writing and promotional issues facing authors. She's a Siren author as well and writes cowboys and BDSM romance books. Today I asked her one question about what most inspires her writing.

BBTF: Writing is often a solitary exercise. What gets you most inspired to write?

Mardi: My books are standalone novels but my heroes are brothers so what gets me writing the next book in the series is the setup I do for it in the previous book. Knowing I’ve put in little tidbits of information here and there and now I have to explain their meaning gets me excited. Even when I’m writing one book my mind is on the next one in the series. I keep files of information on every character (their descriptions, habits, traits, etc), whether they were present during a scene or told about it later, what part they played, what they said, etc. I make notes next to the information concerning what their future part will be and how they will move the story forward in their book. Sometimes, well, okay most of the time my characters take over and tell their own story and they surprise even me. It’s amazing how the human brain works and how the research I’ve done will pop up out of the blue and connect the dots in ways that surprise even me. I love it when that happens and it’s those times that I find writing the most rewarding. I hope it’s those times that make you go “wow” and laugh or cry or feel happy you picked up one of my books.

You can find out more about Mardi Maxwell's books on her website. Be sure to buy a book and tell a friend. Happy reading! 

Author of the Week - Donna Michaels

Welcome back to Buy a Book, Tell a Friend!

This week Donna Michaels visits the blog. I met Donna in person after the RNConvention in Las Vegas in 2013. We discussed writing conferences and book promotion while recovering from the latest conference. They take a lot out of attendees, mostly from information overload. Donna writes contemporary romance featuring heroes who are both cowboys and military personnel. Today I asked her one question about what attracted her most about their qualities.

BBTF: Many of your heroes are both cowboy and military. What attracts you most about heroes with those qualities?

Donna: There are several things that attract me to military and cowboy heroes. They live by a code of honor, which is usually strict and unreasonable, and I love to have the heroine make the hero break his own rules :). My heroes also sacrifice for family/friends and country, and I truly love a tortured hero who lives hard and loves harder.

Those are definitely good qualities, Donna. And happy release day! You can find out more about Donna Michaels's books on her website. Be sure to buy a book and tell a friend. Happy reading!

Author of the Week - Hunter Frost

Welcome back to Buy a Book, Tell a Friend!

This week Hunter Frost visits the blog. I met Hunter in #ThursThreads #flashfiction challenge when she came to write for a special Valentine's Month of Love event in February 2014. I was struck with Hunter's writing style and voice, and was thrilled to find out she lived in Las Vegas like me. Except I moved before we could connect in person. :( Hunter writes sexy M/M romance set in contemporary times. Today I asked her one question about why and how she chose her pen name.

BBTF: You write m/m romance. What first interested you in the genre and how did you get started?

Hunter: Since I love to read m/f romance, I often scour bookseller websites for new and interesting titles. During one of my searches I happened upon a historical western romance. Reading the blurb, I quickly found the story featured two men as the main couple. I was in shock. Not because gay romance novels existed, but that I had no idea they did and had never come across them in my twenty-five years of reading romance. I felt cheated and utterly naïve. A whole other beautiful, erotic, and deeply emotional world had been kept from me all those years. I was not about to be kept in the dark for long. That story led me to seek out a plethora of others. Soon I had completely immersed myself in the works of a healthy variety of m/m authors. I completely fell in love with the genre.

I knew I wanted to write stories like these, but where did I start? Well, I read everything I could find on the craft of m/m romance - mostly blogs and articles written by authors I already had the pleasure of reading. Honestly, m/m writing isn’t much different than m/f writing - the mechanics and structure remain the same - but there are minor issues that require research and experts. Somehow I got the courage to contact my favorite authors in the genre and ask them for advice. I was astounded by their responses and their generosity. The m/m romance community is filled with some of the kindest people I know, and I credit my first publication to their support. From there, I keep looking forward and meeting new people who write romance of all kinds and I’m proud to be able to participate in such a diverse community. Thank you, Siobhan, for allowing me the opportunity to share part of my experience with your readers.

Diversity is the spice of life, I agree. Great choice, Hunter. :) You can find out more about Hunter Frost's books on her website. Be sure to buy a book and tell a friend. Happy reading! 

Author of the Week - Karen Mercury

Welcome back to Buy a Book, Tell a Friend!

This week Karen Mercury visits the blog. I met Karen in person at a get together for Siren authors in Las Vegas in 2013. Karen and I talked dogs, writing, and number of books per year over dinner, and had a nice time. Karen writes hot menage for Siren, but she has also started writing some hot biker romance under another pen name. Today I asked her one question about why and how she chose her pen name.

BBTF: You have two author names. What made you choose another pen name and what genre(s) do you write with it?

Karen: When it was time to choose a pen name for my new motorcycle romance series THE BARE BONES, it suddenly hit me. I wanted to go with Layla Wolfe. As teens, my sister and I would hang in her bedroom smoking weed and taking turns writing “books.” These books were thinly-disguised versions of our real life. In other words, turmoil, drugs, drama, violence, illegal stuff, motorcycles, muscle cars, and more drugs.

My sister’s fake name was Layla Wolfe. I was Shelda Minor. Layla and Shelda would “jam it down the highway” in their Chevelles, Harleys, and SuperSports while outrunning the cops. They jammed it over the Golden Gate Bridge, the Bay Bridge, into the slums of Oakland and Richmond, selling drugs, getting busted, and rumbling, while being super-cool hard chicks, of course.

Layla Wolfe sounded cooler than Shelda Minor, so I went with that. ;)
 
You're right, Layla Wolfe does sound cooler than Shelda. Great choice. :) You can find out more about Layla Wolfe's books on her website. Be sure to buy a book and tell a friend. Happy reading!