I love a bit of bad boy. I’m know I’m not alone either. But I am intrigued, especially given my latest character, pirate Van Gast, what turns a man who should be someone you run from screaming into a lovable rogue? In short, why is he lovable not undatable? In the interests of research (obviously I would not trawl literature and film for examples of sexy men just for myself) I think I may have the answer. Or rather, answers. First and foremost, they are fun. Hans Solo with his laconic wit, Mal Reynolds’ one liners, Captain Jack Sparrow’s grin. Sinbad, Ali Baba, Aladdin. Every character Errol Flynn ever played…They reduce the gravest danger to something that’s fun, exciting, thrilling. Different. Then you have to add a dash of charm. James Bond’s ability to talk a woman into bed in about three seconds flat. The Marquis De Carabas’ languid grace, Richard Sharpe’s élan. Without charm he’d be just another thief or womaniser. The third element is, I think, the most important. What elevates our man from just bad to rogue. Bravery, especially for others. His moral code maybe different, but he has got one. Hans Solo risked everything when it…

I thought I’d share a bit today on my ideal writing day, and if it has ever happened… I’m sure every author has their own idea of the perfect writing day! My ideal writing day would be waking up on a beautiful 80-foot sailboat floating just off the coast of Rarotonga—the smallest of the Cook Islands in the South Pacific. I’d work and drink coffee on the deck for between for six and eight hours, taking breaks to cool off in the water and maybe do some snorkeling. Of course, I’d have a great looking chef to cook my meals and refill my coffee. (I wonder if there’s a Starbucks on Rarotonga?) In the evening, we’d sail to one of the islands while the sun sets, dock, and go to dinner and then repeat the process. I have a friend who flew to Rarotonga just the other day so I’m just a little green with envy. I guess it’s easier for him since he lives in Auckland, but still, it seems so wonderful, I’d like to trade places. My actual writing days are not nearly as romantic. I wake up praying my husband made coffee. If my coffee is not…

My mother made me an addict. She introduced me to comics and forced me to read books. My enrollment in drawing and photography classes came with my discovery of motor skills. The woman was relentless in immersing me in theater and symphonies. Now I visit libraries and bookstores as if they’re dealers. I roll Playbills, light them and inhale. I’m a woman who pumps art straight into her veins, and finds joy in sharing her drugs of choice. I first expressed my addiction through a career in graphic design.  Inspiration came from color, fonts and illustrations. Art movements were translated into graphics, and when a client was happy I was thrilled. Design is storytelling, like all the arts I grew up loving, but it is flash fiction—a tale told in a glance. I craved more. Much later I began writing screenplays and poetry, which led to prose. Before then I’d been talking about writing. My words never equated to more than “I can start whenever I want to.” I didn’t, though. Not until—in true addict-style—I hit rock bottom. I couldn’t regroup until I’d turned tears into ink and emptied myself onto the page. Once I’d written through the pain fiction…

Maggie Walsh, the heroine of the Talk Radio Mysteries, hosts a talk show on WYME, a south Florida radio station. My agent pitched and sold the series as a cross between ”Frasier” and “Murder She Wrote.” Like Fraiser, Maggie is a licensed psychologist who gives up her private practice for the fun and excitement of live radio. And like Jessica Fletcher in “Murder She Wrote,” she solves a murder in every book. Sometimes two! When I was promoting REEL MURDER, book two in the series, Kate White, editor of COSMO and a New York Times best-selling novelist, asked me if I’d like to be a guest on COSMO Radio. Naturally I jumped at the chance. I was invited on the Wake up With Taylor Show, a morning talk show on Sirius Radio hosted by the irrepressible Taylor Strecker and co-host and producer, Kenny Z,  Both Taylor and Kenny,  a stand-up Manhattan comic are smart, witty, high energy people. And above all, they are entertaining. The show is fun, fast-paced and careens from pop culture to politics to arts and entertainment in a nanosecond. If you’re an author and lucky enough to be invited on their show, (or any live radio…

I’m a published author….who writes in four different genres…for three different publishers. Crazy? Maybe. Living life to the fullest while youth and energy are on my side? Definitely. Yes, just call me the Sybil of Writing because each of the genres represents a part of who I am. Various chips in the mosaic that makes up me. I am a hopeless romantic who believes in a soul mate and the one–and so I enjoy inspiring others through really sexy and funny romance stories. I am a teen at heart who is way too enraptured by all things celebrity and fashion–and I get to relive it all through my teen fiction series centered on celebrity. I graduated from college with a Social and Behavioral Science degree (and a Psych minor) and have always been intrigued by people and the motivation–conscious and unconscious–behind their actions particularly in relationships. And what better way to explore my fascination than through mainstream women’s fiction! And then there’s urban fiction–which for me is any story set in an urban environment similar to the one in which I grew up in Newark, New Jersey.  And I loved growing up in Newark–flaws and all: flirting with boys b-balling…

Thanks to Fresh Fiction for inviting me back to talk about my upcoming release, PLEASURE ME. It’s a story about an older woman/younger man story where the hero happens to be a virgin. When trying to come up with a title for the book, my editor and I bounced several ideas back and forth until we settled on PLEASURE ME. One of the really interesting things about my books and titles is that they often prove to have meanings that I don’t see at the time of their creation. I’ll be three-quarters through a book when I’ll write a scene which capitalizes on a minor plot point I’d written at the beginning of the book. It can be something as insignificant as a ring someone wears, something someone says or the actions of a minor character. Then later in the book that insignificant piece of information proves to be a critical component in the storyline. It’s not something that’s planned on my part. It just happens, and I love when it does that. I love how my characters or plots put twists in front of me that enrich the book through character development or surprise plot directions. It’s such a…

My January release, KISS AT YOUR OWN RISK, is my first paranormal romance release in three years, and it is a very special book to me. It’s my triumph, my golden award, the moment of raising that trophy over my head and feeling the true joy of accomplishment fill me. Why? Because KISS AT YOUR OWN RISK is the most beautiful, magical book I’ve ever written, a book that would never have been born had I not been forced by life to dig deep and find beauty within me that I’d never before access. This book is my phoenix, my rise from the ashes, and it is my salute to the power of each of us to triumph, to prevail, to become who we are meant to be. Sometimes life derails us. Sometimes life comes crashing down on us so mercilessly that we feel like we’ll never get out from under it. Sometimes, all we can do is get down on her knees and cry, shouting to the world that it’s TOO DAMN HARD. I’ve been there. Two and a half years ago, my world was rocked. Every foundation of my life was ripped out from under me in one…

So we writers are generally a normal lot. No really! Yes, we talk to the voices in our heads. They’re characters, I swear! And yes, we spend hours staring into space and then claim we’re working. Imagination needs to be exercised! That takes time and chocolate. And last but not least, we envision in gruesome detail all sorts of murders, mayhem, and ugly things. But we also spend lots of time on the color and shape of fairy wings. And whether to spell that fairy or faery. (Or at least I do). That is the writer in her normal balanced state. But sad to say, there is an alternate state, one my friend Eileen Dryer coined as DEADLINE PSYCHOSIS! That is when a deadline approaches and we have half the book to write in a month. Or less. Like a weekend. Yes, I actually knew an author who had one weekend to write half her book. She got it in and it was great, though it took her another few days to come off her caffeine high. So what characterizes this dread disease? It begins with subtle symptoms. Any email that comes in is ignored or dealt with in the…

I have a theory about historical romance. Think about my conclusions to see if you agree. When we were little girls, we loved pretending we were a princess. Disney animation instilled in us that we were princesses, and fairy tales kept us entertained for hours. We dreamed about our prince, and we dressed in long flowing gowns complete with crowns and magic wands. When we were able to read, we imagined ourselves as the princess in distress or even the princess who saved the day. So what does our girlhood pastimes have to do with historical romance? We grew into our teen years and attempted to put the princess syndrome to rest. Some of you succeeded. Others of us couldn’t put aside the fantasy world. The color pink and the cute guy with dreamy eyes held our attention. We devoured romance novels. After all, the heroine always fell in love with the perfect hero, and we knew their love would last forever. We grew older and married our prince, or I hope you did. Then we began to expand our reading horizons. And this is when historical romance moved into our reading pleasure. Stepping back into time lifts the reader…

Writing about the darker aspects of human nature doesn’t come easily to me. Not because my life is fluffy bunnies and rainbow sprinkles, but when I head down that twisted path, my personality changes. While creatively rewarding to craft a hard-edged, take no prisoners character like Mercy Gunderson, it’s all too easy for me to fall into that worse case scenario mindset. Yet, in some respects, delving into dark, gritty scenes are my favorite part of the writing process because it challenges me to step out of my comfort zone. Although I strive to make each book different, I refuse to write anything for pure shock value. It’s tricky finding that balance between describing the act of violence and later explaining the reason for it, without lessening the emotional impact of it. The horror of death should be real in every circumstance, to every character. Detailing the cast of character’s reaction to the death, be it the heroine’s, or the victim’s family, or even the murderer’s, has always been far more gut-wrenching for me to write than another gory scene with blood spatters and empty shell casings. The finality of death is something no one wants to deal with, but…