GIVEAWAY & GUEST AUTHOR: ALEXANDRA IVY

Today, we're honored to have Alexandra Ivy, author of the wonderful Guardians of Eternity series, featuring sexy vamps and hunky weres. Yum!

The Raving Readers: Alexandra, thank you so much for joining us today! Your Guardians of Eternity series is so awesome! How did you come upon the idea for this series?

Alexandra Ivy: First I want to thank you so much for having me as a guest!!  I absolutely love talking with readers (I'm an avid reader myself!) and it's always exciting when I find anyone interested in my Guardian series…especially if they happen to like the books :)  My first itch to write the books came from Buffy (of course). I LOVED that show and the way they combined humor with horror!  It was different and funky and just plain fun.  Of course, when I wrote When Darkness Comes, I was writing historicals and I didn't really plan on having it published.

TRR: Not published? Gasp! What a horror that would be! We're glad that didn't happen. In fact, in reading several of your books, we noticed that your series has an overall arc storyline. Did you plot everything before writing the first book? If not, how do you do it?

AI:   No, the first book I wrote just for fun, but as the series has progressed I've found that there are always a few loose ends that I don't have time to clear up, and that the loose ends have become more and more important and are weaving their way through the series…so now I do have an overall idea of where I want the books to go and while the books are still stand alone, there is a growing evil that encompasses the story line that will be resolved in the last book!

TRR: Yes, so we've noticed and that makes it so exciting! Of all the books that you've written thus far, who is your favorite Guardian and why? Which Guardian fascinates you the most and why?

AI: Dante was my first so he'll always have a special place in my heart, but I think Styx is the most fascinating, simply because of the burdens he carries as King.  I also have to admit to having a very large crush on Salvatore…I didn't know if I'd like writing a Were, but he's such a bad boy I couldn't help but fall in love. :)

TRR: Your heroes are all so yummy. I'd have to add Jagr (Darkness Unleashed) to the list. Viper (Embrace the Darkness) too! In terms of couples, which pair is the easiest to write, as in the words just seemed to flow and there was no stopping you, not lunch nor dinner nor sleep? LOL Why do you think this is so?

AI: Absolutely Viper and Shay…their chemistry just seemed to leap off the page and it was also the book I introduced Levet so there was an added dimension of having the tiny demon around to aggravate Viper (who needed to be aggravated!).  And I just liked their love story.

TRR: Oooh, Viper. Yes, definitely! And now we're on book #6, Beyond the Darkness, Salvatore's story, which will be out in April. Do tell us more.

AI: Salvatore has made appearances in the other books…he's the King of Weres and desperate to save his people from the edge of extinction.  Thirty years ago he genetically altered four female pureblooded females so they couldn't shift, which he hoped would help them carry their litters to full term.  During Beyond the Darkness, he discovers there is a darker force hunting the Weres and he also stunned when he finds one of the pureblooded females (Harley) stirs more than his lust.  Ancient powers are stirring and Salvatore realizes Harley is his true mate.  Unfortunately, she's been trained to believe he's the enemy and unless Salvatore can convince her to join their powers, it might very well be the end of the Weres.

TRR: Why are Salvatore and Harley perfect for each other?

AI: Salvatore has always been the strongest, the smartest, and the most arrogant among the Weres.  He needs a female who can stand up to him and be a true partner, not a lapdog (pun intended :)).  There are also wounds that they both carry that can only be healed by each other.

TRR: I LOL at the dog comments. I really like your humor. Have there been instances when your characters refused to do as they're told? How did you deal with them? 

AI: Daily.  Sometimes they don't behave because I'm trying to take them in the wrong direction.  Once a character is fully formed it knows where it wants to go and what it wants to do…I know, it sounds creepy!  I usually have to take a break and truly consider what the scene is about and how I can approach it differently.

TRR: I guess a writer's job is not easy. Now, the question all fans truly want to know the answer to: How many more books do you have planned in the series, assuming your publisher buys them all? 

AI: There will be at least four more (as well as two anthologies that are loosely based on the Guardians).  The next book will be Tane's, who is a vampire Charon (a vampire assassin) and a half-Jinn mongrel…I'm writing the book now and it's soooo much fun!  There others are still fairly vague.

TRR: Oooh, I know about that half-Jinn. Would love to read that. Hope there'll be more about that still unknown sister too. Are you by any chance joining any conferences or do you have any book signing events where fans can meet and talk to you? 

AI: I rarely do conferences…I'm fairly shy and the thought of going alone to a huge conference tends to give me a rash. :)  I do love to do book signings to meet readers (actually it's one of my favorite things!!)  Right now I haven't scheduled any signings but I always keep my website updated!

TRR: Right. I'll be sure to check the website often. Sadly, we're down to our last question. Anything else you'd like to tell us?

AI: You can contact me at any of the below:

http://www.alexandraivy.com/

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#%21/alexandra.ivy?ref=profile

http://apps.facebook.com/twitter/

I hope everyone will drop me a line…I love to hear from readers!!

TRR: Thank you, Alex and it's a real pleasure to have you with us.

~ o ~

We have two giveaways--any book from the author's backlist, which includes the one to be released in April (Beyond the Darkness)! One international and one US residents only. In fairness to everyone, this means there'll be two pools of entrants--one US resident pool and the other non-US resident. Please indicate your country of residence when you comment.

We'll also have Alexandra Ivy popping in and out of the blog, so if you've any questions, feel free to ask! She'll be around to answer and comment.

How to enter the contest?

Answer this question: Go to Alexandra's website and tell us which of her Guardians of Eternity books you'd like to read the most and why.

Extra chances to win:

+ 3 if you're an old follower of this blog
+ 2 if you're a new follower of this blog (start following from this contest/post)
+ 2 if you follow us on Facebook or Twitter
+ 2 if you take our poster (located on the right sidebar) about this contest and post it
              on your blog/website with a link back to us
+ 1 for every time you spread the word about this contest via Facebook, MySpace, Twitter,
              your blog, website or other form of social media. For example, you tweeted about
              this contest twice and also announced it on your Facebook. You also wrote a blog
              post. That's 4 additional chances! However, for these to qualify, be sure to come
              back here and post the links. Like, if you tweeted twice, give me both links.

If you do all of the above, at a minimum, that's 9 chances to win (8 if you're a new follower)! Remember, the more things you do to help us spread the word, the better your chances.

Contest ends on March 24 (Wednesday), 1159pm EST.

Winner will be picked via Randomizer.org and announced on March 25 (Thursday). Instructions will be given then on how to claim your prize. Be sure to come back and check because we won't hunt you down. If prizes are unclaimed after 1 week, new winners will be chosen.

Good luck!

GIVEAWAY and INTERVIEW with L.J. McDonald

We have here with us today L.J. MCDONALD, author of The Sylphs series. THE BATTLE SYLPH is currently available, while the second in the series THE SHATTERED SYLPH will be out next month (April). And in November 2010, we'll have the third book, QUEEN OF THE SYLPHS. Yay, so much to look forward to!

The Raving Readers (TRR): LJ, thanks so much for gracing us with your presence here at The Raving Readers. Before anything else, we’d like to know about you! What can you tell us about yourself?

L.J. McDonald (LJM): Well, I'm thirty-nine. I'm a clerk in the Canadian military and I've been married to my fantastic husband for fourteen years. We don't have any kids. Instead we have two cats, a bunch of fish, and a snake. I’m currently living just outside Ottawa in Ontario, Canada (and loving it) and I've been writing since I was fifteen years old. I also spend my time knitting, painting, and reading.

TRR: We understand THE BATTLE SYLPH is your first published book and we can attest it's an awesome debut! How did you come up with the idea for this series?

LJM: The idea for the first book had its germination in a couple of concepts I've been playing with for a long time. I like the idea of dealing with characters who aren't quite human. I like how you can exceed human limitations with them and I'd specifically been wanting to write a book with a shape-shifter in it for a while. I'd even made a failed attempt at writing one, where it just didn't work. I shelved that book, which I’ll probably come back to and reinvent since it still has some ideas in it that I like, and started tossing around the idea of shape-shifters again. Around that time, I read something about the legend of the Japanese Tengu, who is a bird-type spirit that can change shape and has really big noses. I obviously didn't go with the big nose, but I did like the concept that the tengu can be controlled if you know their name. That suddenly flipped all around in my head and suddenly I had the empathic, shape-changing battle sylphs. The other sylphs just came from brain storming, as did the world itself, a lot of it while tossing ideas back and forth with my husband Oliver. He's really good for that.

The plot and ideas for THE BATTLE SYLPH came out so strongly that I had the first draft written in a month. I wish it always worked that way.

TRR: Wow, looks like you have a very supportive husband. I'm sure a lot of people would like to know how many books have you got planned for the series? Can you give us a hint about them?

LJM: There are five existing books right now. Dorchester has currently bought three. I have ideas and a few scenes for a sixth book that I'll be writing. So right now there are six. I don't know that there will be more. I didn't intend to write more than one. Then I didn't intend to do more than three, then four. And I certainly never expected to be thinking of six.

As for hints, the first one is obvious, so no need to get into that. What can I give as teasers for the rest?

THE SHATTERED SYLPH – Leon Petrule's oldest daughter Lizzy is kidnapped by slavers and it's up to Leon and his battle sylph Ril to track her down. That one comes out next month.

QUEEN OF THE SYLPHS – Solie discovers she has a problem she isn't sure Heyou can help her with while strange accidents start happening in Sylph Valley, a lot of them targeting the members of the ruling council. Meanwhile, something no one was ever expecting starts examining the gate from the valley into the sylph world, from the other side.

These three are definitely coming out. I won't say that the next two are, because I don't know, but I do know there's interest. But as I was told, until you have a signed contract in your hand...

HUNTER OF THE SYLPHS – In Shattered, Leon and Ril had to go to a foreign land. Now Devon, who is phobic about battlers, returns there in their stead, just in time to find out exactly why battle sylphs need to be so horrendously dangerous. He's also just in time to meet the love of his life, as well as the battle sylph who's decided he wants to claim her for his own.

WAR OF THE SYLPHS – There have been tensions between the king of Eferem and Sylph Valley for years (he did try to have Solie sacrificed, after all). When the Eferem king finds he has a secret weapon, those tensions turn into full bloodshed.

LOSS OF THE SYLPHS - this one isn't even written yet. Massively subject to change or my getting distracted by other shiny things to write. Can't say much about it other than that humans are going to see the sylph world up close. VERY up close.

All of the books have romance in them, since it's fun to write, and I hope that they all hit the shelves and people like them. I'll write them regardless. I'm still recovering from the shock that people want to read them. :)

TRR: So exciting! We definitely want to read about Devon. Looks like a great triangle there. Or would that be a square (including Airi)? Anyway, back to THE BATTLE SYLPH, the pivotal/main characters, Heyou and Solie, are portrayed as young and untried. Did you deliberately create them this way? Why? Will we see them grow over the series?

LJM: I did. I didn't see any reason not to. The only way I saw for Solie to not have already been married off to someone in a medieval society was for her to be young. Having Heyou young as well just worked well. They will definitely grow over the course of the series, especially Solie. Heyou will as well, but sylphs live much longer, so mature more slowly than humans. He'll definitely have matured by the end of the series, but then anyone should change over time.

TRR: We certainly didn't think of that. It proves that a writer's mind works differently from that of a reader. So what makes Heyou perfect for Solie and vice-versa?

LJM: That’s tough.... I think Heyou is perfect for Solie because he believes in her, and supports her no matter what. He has no doubt whatsoever that she can do whatever she wants to. For Heyou, Solie is perfect because she lets him be himself without abusing him. Given how he absolutely must obey her without question, the fact that she doesn't take advantage shows how strong a person she is. They balance each other. He's her sense of fun, she's his sense of reason. Plus they each think the other's kind of hot.

TRR: We know how hot! *wink* What about the other characters in the story, such as Mace, Ril, Leon, Devon and Galway? Will we see them take center stage in your next books?

LJM: Yes, to just about all of them. Especially Leon and Ril, who are unabashedly my favourite characters in the entire series, and Devon, who gets his very own story in book four. Mace and Galway are around, but they're more background characters, though Mace will be starring in a novella coming out next Christmas.

TRR: That's great! With so many characters in your books, did you ever find yourself arguing with any of them, like when they decided the story has to go in the opposite direction for what you've planned? How do you handle such an event?

LJM: Usually, I lose.... When I first wrote THE BATTLE SYLPH, Leon was supposed to be a villain, plain and simple, and he and Ril were both supposed to die. Leon flat out refused to have anything to do with any of that and turned himself and Ril into what I think are the most interesting characters in the series. They even got themselves a stay of execution, though I do love to be evil to them, and I am.

If characters want to write themselves, I'm not going to argue with them. The best stories are those that write themselves. THE BATTLE SYLPH was like that nearly all the way through. The only thing I did manage to keep control of was Heyou's complaints that he really should have had sex sooner....

TRR: LOL. We're inferring that you like fantasy since you’re writing in this genre. What books/persons have inspired you to write in this genre?

LJM: I think the first true fantasy novel I read was ELFSTONES OF SHANNARA by Terry Brooks. I got it for Christmas. I hadn't even known the genre existed and it was so much more exciting and terrifying than my horse books. I don't know that any specific author has inspired me to write fantasy, since my favourite authors are Stephen King and Charles de Lint, neither of whom do much fantasy. It's just the genre as a whole that pulled me into it. I love the opportunity to world-build and fantasy offers you the best chance to do that. Certainly it does me, since I’m not all that good at science.

TRR: Well, you seem to be good at fantays. *wink* What has your experience for the whole process been like—from writing the stories to publication?

LJM: The writing has always been there, since I've always done it. The publishing part was a total surprise. I never expected to be published. I never expected to try. It was my husband nagging me to enter my work in a contest Shomi was offering that finally got me out there. I certainly didn't expect to win, and I didn't, since they were looking for something very different, but I did sell the trilogy. I’m still reeling. People want to read my work? Why?

It's been fun, but it's also been a huge amount of work. Writing the books is the easy part. It really is.

TRR: To answer your question, well, we here at TRR are always searching for good books to read, books that would take us out of our humdrum lives into exciting worlds like yours. So, would you encourage budding writers to take the same path that you did? Or if you could do something differently, what would it be?

LJM: Follow my example? Not likely. Not given my answer to number nine. I guess the only thing I'd do differently would be to have really worked on getting published sooner, such as twenty years ago? I should have had more faith in myself. That's my suggestion for budding authors. Have faith in yourself. And write lots. At least I got that part right. I've got something of a backlog to send to my agent, once the Sylph books are all sorted out.

TRR: Backlogs are good. We readers also get our books sooner. *grin* We've come to the end of our questions. L.J., do you have any last words for us?

LJM: My website is at http://www.ljmcdonald.ca/. I have a blog there, but it’s not updated that often, due to sheer incompetence on my part. And I never know what to say in a blog. I don’t know how you guys manage to do it.

TRR: Well, there are three of us. Thank you so much! Doing this interview with you is a real pleasure!

LJM: Hey, I enjoyed it. Thanks for the opportunity.

~ o ~

Want to win a copy of THE BATTLE SYLPH?

Here's how: 

Answer today's question: Because of Heyou's youth, Galway became his mentor and influenced him, to a certain degree. In your life, who influenced you the most? How?

Extra chances to win:

+ 3 if you're a follower of this blog

+ 2 if you follow us on Facebook or Twitter

+ 2 if you take our poster (located on the right sidebar) about this contest and post it

          on your blog/website with a link back to us

+ 1 for every time you spread the word about this contest via Facebook, MySpace, 

          Twitter, your blog, website or other form of social media. For example, you 

          tweeted about this contest twice and also announced it on your Facebook. You also

          wrote a blog post. That's 4 additional chances! However, for these to qualify, be 

          sure to come back here and post the links. Like, if you tweeted twice, give me 

          both links.

If you do all of the above, at a minimum, that's 9 chances to win!

Contest ends on March 12 (Friday), 1159pm EST.

Winner will be picked via Randomizer.org and announced on March 13 (Saturday).

Good luck!

INTERVIEW with Susan Lyons

We'd like to welcome Susan Lyons, amazing author of Sex Drive to The Raving Readers! Thank you for joining us!

The Raving Readers: Susan, we understand Sex Drive is the first book in the series Wild Ride to Love. What an apt series title! How did your idea for the series come about?

Susan Lyons: In casual chat one day, an idea came out of the blue that it would be fun to write a "planes, trains, and automobiles" series of romances. I think different modes of transportation are sexy in their own way. Also, travel is a journey, a transition time, and so is the development of a romance--that wild ride to love!--so together I could see them making for intriguing stories.

That idea fermented in my mind for at least a couple of years, as I wrote my Awesome Foursome series starring four 20-something best friends. I loved writing about female relationships (in addition, of course, to the romance and the heroine's and hero's growth arcs) and I loved writing a linked series. But, rather than doing friends again, I was intrigued by sisters--in part because I'm an only child and have always been the outsider looking in. Well, a writer gets to go anywhere she wants, so I decided to step into the world of sisters.

All those ideas wove together into the concept of the Wild Ride to Love series. Four sisters, four modes of transportation (yes, a cruise ship got thrown in there!), four very sexy and romantic wild rides to love.

TRR: How exciting! So that's how series are made. Now, let's talk about Sex Drive, the first book in the Wild Ride to Love series. The hero, Damien Black, is so sexy and charming and too good to be true! How did he come into being? Where did you get the idea for his character? Like, is he modeled after someone--or many someone's--that you know or did he spring purely from your imagination?

SL: Thanks. I love Damien too. Another joy of being a writer is that we get to create and spend time with the sexiest men in the world. Even if only in our imaginations! (No, sigh, he's not based on a real someone in my life…)

Because I was writing about sisters, I envisioned the heroine first. Professor Theresa Fallon is a studious type who's been unlucky in love, who believes herself unattractive to men, who figures her sex drive has pretty much shrivelled up and died. So, what kind of hero would most challenge and attract Theresa? Of course she thinks it's the professorial type, so I gave her the opposite. Damien is a celebrity author who writes paranormal thrillers--books that an intellectual like her considers to be superficial and a waste of time. Not only is he a hottie, he's been voted one of Australia's 10 sexiest bachelors and he could have pretty much any woman he wants.

And he chooses her.

TRR: We should all be so lucky! *sighs with envy* Still about Damien, in your opinion, how is he different from the other sexy and gorgeous heroes we read about in books? In other words, what makes him unique?

SL: One thing I love about Damien is that he's a writer. Not a wimpy, intellectual one, but a guy who writes paranormal thrillers. He loves his job and he knows the industry, and that's fun for a writer to write about. He's also a man who sees beyond the obvious--like the flight attendant with fake boobs and too much makeup--to the more subtly beautiful Theresa. And he sees her as a real, multi-faceted person: he flirts with her, he gives her sensual and sexual pleasure, and he challenges her intellectually. He also has strong enough self-esteem that he doesn't always have to be right, and he can learn from her. (Plus, did I mention, he really is sexy and gorgeous. LOL.)

TRR: No doubt about it, Damien is such a sexy guy and I don't just mean the physical. What makes him perfect for the heroine, Dr. Theresa Fallon?

SL: He genuinely finds her feminine and sexy, while most men don't see beyond her rather buttoned-up image. He brings out that side of her until she actually believes she's feminine and sexy. He's spontaneous and fun, whereas she tends to operate by rules and lists, and he helps her lighten up and learn how to have fun. They're both intelligent and they challenge each other to grow and become better people--and they have fun sparring while they're doing it.

TRR: Lucky Tezzie, that's all I can say. Would that I could be a heroine in your novel... So, what do you like about Theresa Fallon?

SL: Personally, as an only child, I relate to the pressures put on a bright oldest child. I like her responsibility and reliability. I like that she's found a career she's passionate about and that she wants to make the world a better place (she's a sociology prof, specializing in indigenous peoples, and she wants to improve their situation). I like how, even though she's a pretty structured person, she can move past that to see things in new ways, whether it's coming to realize her own sexuality, or to decide she can do more good if she comes out of the ivory tower and talks to the non-academic world. She's a good but flawed human being, as we all are, and she learns about herself and is willing to do the hard work of becoming a better person.

TRR: Yes, I like that about herself too, that she's willing to change and accept another person's criticism/suggestion. In fact, both Damien and Theresa were part of the reason Sex Drive was a fast, easy read for me. They were so compelling I just couldn't help but turn the page, or in my case, scroll down (ebook ARC). Was that how it was for you when you wrote it? Did you ever find yourself arguing with your characters, like when they decided the story has to go in the opposite direction for what you've planned? How do you handle such an event?

SL: Most books go by fits and starts, for me. I rarely plot ahead of time, except to know that the story's a romance so it's going to have a happy ending. How the characters get there . . . well, that's something I discover along the way. (I have my own wild ride, too. LOL.)

TRR:  Ooooh... sounds exciting! Oops, sorry, please go on.

SL: Sometimes I stall, then I have to go walk around, puzzle things out, wait for inspiration. Often the characters do kind of take over the keyboard, and it's always fun when that happens. Because I don't really do much plotting, I'm pretty open to where the characters want to go. Once, when I was writing She's on Top, the final book in the Awesome Foursome series, the hero decided how the story was going to end, and it took me by surprise and I had a mental argument with him. He won, and he was right!

TRR: The way you put it, writing sounds so exciting. How long does it usually take you to write a book from conceptualization to research to the finished draft? Let's take, for example, Sex Drive.

SL: I usually allow four months to write a book, but often some of the brainstorming happens ahead of time. The idea's in my mind, germinating, before I actually get started. Recently, I've been lucky enough to have back-to-back contracts, so I haven't had spare time to play with ideas. I finish one book, and it's time to start the next, and I'm on a relatively tight time line. With series books, the first one is very interesting – e.g., with Sex Drive, I wasn't just learning about Theresa and Damien, I needed to get a fairly clear idea of Theresa's three younger sisters. Whatever I said about them in Sex Drive, I'd have to live with in three more books. Then, when I get to the next books (the second, Love Unexpectedly, comes out in April and I'll be starting to write the third in two or three weeks), I at least have a fair idea about the heroine's personality and issues, which makes it a little easier. Unless of course I have some brilliant inspiration and want to change things, and get frustrated if I can't!

TRR: You have another series, I believe, this one about four friends. Please tell us a little bit about this series and how different is it from the Wild Love to Ride series.

SL: Yes, that's the Awesome Foursome series. Champagne Rules, the first book in that series, was the first book I sold. I wasn't planning a series, but when I developed my heroine, I gave her three girlfriends. I have several 4-women groups in my life, and I've loved Sex And The City and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. There's a certain magic about 4-girlfriend groups.

TRR: Sorry, I couldn't help but comment. Maybe I should get one more person to complete my own magical 4-girlfriend group!

SL: You certainly should! Anyway, by the time I'd written Champagne Rules, of course I'd gotten to love the heroine's three friends, and of course they all deserved their own sexy heroes and their own love stories. So, it became a series. Each book follows one couple's romance, and they go in chronological order. Each book has all four of the women in it, and the reader gets to follow what's happening in each of their lives. Also, each heroine has an issue that resonates for contemporary women: e.g., balancing career and personal life, respecting your parents but making your own way in life, having body image issues. I've had lots of great feedback on those books.

TRR: Sound like my kind of books. I've often heard that writers are readers, too. Your own books aside, what books have you read that you wouldn't hesitate recommending, because you believe other people will love it as you do?

SL: I'm definitely a reader. I'm addicted to reading. I read when I'm brushing my teeth. Seriously. But I do know we all have distinct tastes, so I'm reluctant to make recommendations. Also, I have so many writer friends now, I don't want to recommend one writer over another!

TRR: Speaking of writers, Damien mentioned that he has a beach cottage where he goes to write. What is your special place?

SL: I have a bright, ergonomically set up home office in downtown Vancouver that looks out on a garden courtyard. I love nature, love plants, have orchid plants on my desk. I do a lot of writing there, but sometimes the desk starts to get associated with the business aspects of the writing life rather than the creative ones, so then I take my laptop and go work in a chair in the living room. We also have a fixer-upper country home in Victoria, with a gorgeous ocean view, and I often work there as well. Or on the ferry, going back and forth.

TRR: I've heard that a change of scenery does wonders for the creative juices. Looks like that works for you! So, what do you have upcoming for your fans?

SL: In January, I have Sex on the Beach, from Berkley Heat. It has three intertwined romances set around a destination wedding in Belize. In January, February, and March, I have three Harlequin Spice Briefs, the Erotique series, about three "average" women who find erotic, romantic adventures at a private sex club. In March, I have a novella in a Kensington Aphrodisia anthology called Some Like It Rough. My story's about a buttoned-up admin assistant who goes undercover as an exotic dancer and discovers her wild side – and her female power over the sexy PI who's "keeping an eye on her." In April, there's the second Wild Ride to Love book, Love, Unexpectedly. This one is in the Kensington Brava line, under the pen name Susan Fox. It's about the second sister, and explores what it takes for best friends to turn into passionate lovers.

TRR: Now that you mention it, it's interesting that Sex Drive is published under the name Susan Lyons, and Love, Unexpectedly plus the 3rd and 4th books in the series are under the name Susan Fox. Why would different books in the same series be published under different pen names when both Susan Lyons and Susan Fox are you?

SL: Well, it wasn't my decision and I wasn't a fly on the wall at Kensington's editorial meeting, so I can't answer that one. After Sex Drive was in the works, Kensington asked me if I'd like to move from the Aphrodisia line to the Brava line. Aphrodisia is explicitly erotic; Brava is very spicy but doesn't go quite as far. I'd always thought my writing was better suited to Brava, so I was delighted to have the opportunity to write for them. It was weird timing, being in the middle of a series, but that's just how it worked out. I think the publisher's general idea is to have somewhat different branding for the two lines and my two names. I could certainly understand that if I was, for example, writing both erotic romance and sweet romance. But in fact, my writing is pretty much the same. My focus is always on the romance rather than the sex, and the sex is one woman and one man (no ménage, shapeshifters, or vampires!) and not incredibly kinky (no BDSM), and the books under both names are very spicy. Oh, and just to confuse matters further, I also write very sweet short romances for The Wild Rose Press under the Susan Lyons name (they're collected in an anthology called Calendar of Love).

All I can say is, I hope this works out for the best! I hope readers who find me under one name will be savvy enough to track me down under the other name as well. I have to figure the publisher knows what they're doing. In this business, we all have our expertise and role. Mine is to write the books.

TRR: True enough. With the Internet, I think it's safe to say we're all getting savvier every day. Any last words for us?

SL: Just that I love, love, love hearing from fans. They can contact me via my website.

TRR: Not only that, but Susan's website is stuffed full of goodies for the readers. I know I had a fun time browsing the site.

SL: Thanks, Shana. Yes, I have excerpts, trailers, behind-the-scenes notes, discussion guides, recipes, review quotes, a monthly contest, and an e-newsletter. Thanks so much for having me here. It's been a blast, and I'm looking forward to chatting with readers. Ask me anything and I'll do my best to answer.

TRR: Thank you so much for this interview! It's great having you here with us.

Interested to read Sex Drive?

Buy Links (paper): Amazon, Book Depository, Barnes and Noble
Buy Link (ebook): Barnes and Noble Ebook

Interested to read Sex On The Beach?

Buy Links (paper): Amazon, Book Depository, Barnes and Noble 
Buy Link (ebook): Barnes and Noble Ebook


Enter for the chance to win an autographed copy of Sex On The Beach!

How to Enter:  You can do any or all of the following:

1. Comment on any of the posts on January 13 and 14.

2. Ask questions. Susan will be dropping by the blog from time to time and will answer any questions you might have.

3. Answer this question: ("stolen" from Susan's book discussion questions in Sex Drive. More discussion questions can be found on Susan's website.)

Birth order. Theresa is the oldest of four sisters. How has that fact, and family history, shaped her personality? What's been the influence of birth order on her younger sisters? And how about you? What's your order in your family, and do you think that's affected you?

Who Can Enter: Anybody on this planet.

Contest Deadline:  11:59pm EST on January 14, 2010

Winner Announcement:  The name of the winner will be posted on the blog on January 15, 2010. Instructions will be given then on how to claim the prize.

* Check out our review of Sex Drive and a Sneak Peek of Sex On The Beach!

INTERVIEW: Lynn Viehl in the House!

Lynn Viehl, awesome author of the Darkyn and Kyndred series, has graciously consented to answer my questions regarding Shadowlight and...other stuff. Read on to find out more!

Silver: Lynn, thank you for being here and being so generous with your time and answers. You have such a long and successful writing career, with books written in various genre. For the sake of new-to-you readers, can you tell us a few things about yourself? Where would you suggest we start reading your books?

Lynn: Other than the fact that I’m hopelessly ordinary, I live in country with my guy, our two teenagers, two rescued cats, and a Sheltie pup. New-to-me readers might first want to try one of my free e-books posted on Scribd.com (http://www.scribd.com/people/documents/179767-lynn). I have original novels, novellas, anthologies and short stories in a variety of genres posted there, and all of them are free for anyone to read online, download in .txt or .pdf format, and/or print out.

Silver: That's great! I've been to there, and you certainly have a lot of free stuff to delight a reader's heart. Do you have a favorite genre that you love to explore and write? Why does this genre appeal to you?

Lynn: I try not to play genre favorites because they’re like little girls and get jealous of each other, but the world-building involved in dark fantasy and SF make them the easiest and most interesting for me to write. Don’t tell my romances that.

Silver: My mouth's firmly zipped. :) Now, how long does it take you to write a book, from conceptualization to submission, including research? You can take for example, Shadowlight.

Lynn: It varies, but the average time is between four to six months per novel. I write several novels simultaneously so I’m often working on two or three books at the same time. Shadowlight took about eight months, a bit longer than usual because I took a trip to Savannah to map out some of the settings and conduct some interviews with real-life experts for certain parts of the story.

Silver: Wow, the perks of writing! How did your idea for Shadowlight evolve?

Lynn: After my publisher told me to stop writing my Darkyn novels and put together a new series concept for them, I asked if I could use a portion of the Darkyn universe revealed in the last novel as a jumping-off point. I felt it was important to deliver something that my Darkyn readership would enjoy, and as the original series did very well it seemed sensible to put together a spin-off.

Silver: Another researh question incoming! What is the research that went into this story?

Lynn: I’ve already mentioned the research trip I made to Savannah. I also mapped out the concept with help from some friends in the medical science community, and did quite a bit of reading up on genetic science and the practices of biotech corporations. I interviewed a number of experts and real-life counterparts for the characters, including adults who were adopted as children. I also discovered exactly how to disappear, establish a new identity and handle other things related to the Kyndred characterizations.

Silver: *Very* interesting. I'm astounded by the medical terms you used in the story, and they certainly lend an authenticity to the story. Are you a doctor in your other life? *grin*

Lynn: No, but I play one in my science fiction series. :)

Silver: What do you like about Jessa Bellamy?

Lynn: Because of the differences in our backgrounds and our personalities, Jessa’s character was a real writing challenge for me. I love that kind of character because it allows me to step outside myself and my comfort zone, which I think is important at this stage in my career to help me avoid repetition in my characterizations.

Silver: What makes her the perfect heroine for this novel?

Lynn: For this book I needed a character that embodied both the spirit and the mythology that inspired the Kyndred universe, and I think Jessa did the job.

Silver: She certainly did! You've mentioned that you have a hard time writing love scenes. Did you have the same problem in Shadowlight? How did you overcome it?

Lynn: Often there is a great deal of clamor for writers to deliver physical and emotional intimacy early on in the book as well as the obligatory HEA. I’d rather let intimacy happen naturally as the characters’ relationship develops versus forcing it, and I don’t believe in HEA endings because they’re rarely realistic. As a result I always get a lot of revision requests in those departments. I’ve been experimenting with some new approaches to the problems, and in Shadowlight I think I came up with some interesting compromises, but still, it’s an ongoing, frustrating situation.

Silver: Oooh, I know what you mean. I simply love the massage! LOL What else do you have in store for your fans?

Lynn: Right now I’m finishing up a free e-book that has a parallel story to Shadowlight, which I’ll be giving away online at the end of September, and in late October I’ll have another free e-book which will be Darkyn High Lord Richard Tremayne’s story. I’m also writing the last novel in my SF series and putting together some proposals for two new dark fantasy/paranormal novels. Depending on how the new series performs, my publisher may ask me for more Darkyn novels to publish in print, but I’m not sure I want to go back after they had me wrap up that series. I may write a couple of Darkyn standalones as a compromise; it really depends on what they want to see and what I’m willing to write.

Silver: Wow, that's a lot! I'm sure your fans will be happy to know that. I can attest to it! LOL As an author, I'm sure you also love to read! What are your guilty pleasure books?

Lynn: Poetry collections and nonfiction history books, mainly because I have no real professional reason to buy and read them. I also enjoy reading working memoirs by doctors, surgeons and other people in the medical field, which will become a guilty pleasure as soon as my SF series ends.

Silver: If you are to be stranded on an island for a year and you can only take one book, what would this be? Why?

Lynn: Only one book? What if it caught on fire, or got swept out to sea? What if a giant turtle decided to eat it? Ha. If there isn’t a giant manual out there titled “How to survive on an island with no books” then I’d probably want e.e. cummings Complete Poems 1904-1962, edited by George J. Firmage, ISBN# 0871401525. I never get tired of reading e.e.’s poetry.

Silver: What is one advice you would give to writers who are trying to break into publishing?

Lynn: Be persistent, patient, and write daily or as often as possible. It took me ten years and over a thousand rejections before I received my first offer. Also, if you have a manuscript you can’t sell that you consider to be the book of your heart, take it out in the backyard and burn it.

Silver: Ouch. Well, then, to aid would-be-authors, what is one must-have reference book that an author should have?

Lynn: All these one-book-only questions are killing me here.

Silver: I just love torturing authors. *evil laugh*

Lynn: The most complete writing instruction/reference book that I recommend most often is Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide from New York's Acclaimed Creative Writing School by Gotham Writers' Workshop, edited by Alexander Steele, ISBN#9781582343303.

Silver: Any last words for everyone?

Lynn: Please keep reading, and tell others about any books you enjoy. It’s a great way to keep your favorite writers employed, and absolutely the best advertising money can’t buy.

Thank you, Lynn, for this wonderful interview, and for the chance to review Shadowlight. Read my review!