A couple of weeks ago, I called a local romance-friendly bookseller to invite her to have lunch with the published authors of my RWA chapter. And she invited me, in return, to attend the monthly paranormal readers’ meeting, which would take place that evening at her store. The kids were at Grandma’s for spring break. And though I did not read heavily in the paranormal genre, I thought it was a good opportunity to get out of the house and meet the bookseller in person. Did I mention that I don’t read heavily in the paranormal genre? I was surprised when I got to the meeting to realize how many I have read. There was another author from my local chapter at the meeting. Other than the two of us, none of the other readers present had yet to try J. R. Ward. We practically shoved the Black Dagger Brotherhood books into their hands. During the course of the evening we’d recommended Shana Abe, Nalini Singh, Lara Adrian, Meljean Brook and Marjorie M. Liu, among others. And right after I left the meeting, I smacked myself on the forehead. How could I have forgotten Kelley Armstrong? It was, believe it…

Even as a child growing up in an Italian-American household, March 17th has always been one of my favorite days of the year. My dad loved to celebrate every holiday with a bang, and this day, celebrating the Irish culture, was no different. After donning our Kiss Me, I’m Irish buttons, we would head into downtown Manhattan to see the parade, and then go back home for dad’s famous corned-beef and cabbage. It’s a tradition I still carry on with my husband (who is, of course, Irish) and our kids. Imagine how happy I was when I discovered that this time of Celtic appreciation had been extended for a few more weeks. Tartan Week in Manhattan runs from the end of March to the beginning of April. Scottish pride abounds at such glorious events as the Dressed To Kilt fashion show, the Tartan Day parade, The Scottish Village in Grand Central Terminal, and the 10K Scottish run in Central Park. It was at the Scottish Village where I met the hero of my next Grand Central release, A Highlander Never Surrenders, in the flesh. His name is Chris Capaldi, model and former rugby star from Edinburgh. (Or as I now…

I’ve just come off my first book tour and for the most part it was a blast! The weather was my only real complaint. What a thrill to meet readers and hear first-hand how my two books have impacted them. As an historical novelist, the aspect of authoring that seemed to interest people and provoke the most questions was the research. “How much research do you do?” or “What percentage of your day goes to research and what to writing?” or even “Do you enjoy researching?” were common questions I was asked. Yes, I love the research – especially when it takes me to neat places like Lisbon, Bruges, Edinburgh and London. I usually spend two or three weeks before starting to write in Europe—you know, if it’s Tuesday it must be Belgium (and in my case that happened a lot for “Daughter Of York”)–and I have to confess it is tiring following in the footsteps of my characters. But without seeing the cities, churches, castles and landscapes that my characters would have seen, how can I give you a good idea of what it was to live there in those times? I need to look out of the third…

It’s a good time for historicals. Or at least, it should be. I’ve seen more historical shows and movies in the last few years than at any time in the last few decades. The Tudors. Rome. Cate Blanchett’s turns as Elizabeth. Not one, but two versions of Beowulf. It’s a historical writer’s dream. But what about for a fan of historical stories? Are we seeing the trend carried out in our books? Certainly I see the trend in more mainstream-y fiction. The fabulous success of Philippa Gregory’s books tells me interest is there for readers. But I’m not sure the new popularity has fully touched the ranks of romance given the percentage of new historical romances available. My first clue was that some of historical romance’s brightest stars have gone on to write contemporary books. Lisa Kleypas in recent years. Before that, readers witnessed a rash of historical author defections—Elizabeth Lowell, Iris Johansen, Julie Garwood, Pamela Morsi. Other authors, like Amanda Quick, maintained a larger presence on the contemporary side while still writing historical books. I miss their historical offerings, don’t you? Likewise, when Pirates of the Caribbean exploded in popularity, I thought for sure we’d see some renewed interest…

As I step ever so lightly toward another birthday this week, the one that comes “after” the milestone one we all remember our parents getting to. I am reminded again of how very different perceptions of youth, not to mention birthdays can be. I honestly don’t think about growing older. I don’t think I would trade all that I have learned, for the chance to go back and relive it. Besides, I’ve far too many adventures ahead of me yet to want to return to the blossom of my youth. Nevertheless, to each his/her own; though we joke about it, I have a dear friend (who looks much younger than I look, but is, only by a month and killer genes, I’m guessing) who has made me swear I must never allow her to be placed in a nursing home. She claims *GASP-those are for old people. She isn’t going to get old. Given that, I should never have to worry seeing her in a home for the aged, since she never plans to be old. Her humor and attitude though, is what I admire and emulate. We see ourselves as an aging Thelma and Louise, making our spur of…

I don’t write many rakehell heroes. The hero of my upcoming book, Let Sleeping Rogues Lie, is really only my third. And why is that, you may ask? It’s simple, really. I like my heroes to have compelling reasons for what they do, and I tend to think of rakehells as skirt-chasers who just want to have fun. A guy like that is hard to reform, and if he doesn’t reform, well, I worry that he’ll go on chasing skirts after the wedding. That would certainly put a damper on the whole happily ever after thing. Still, I’ve managed to create a few by digging deeper. For Gavin Byrne in One Night with a Prince, I gave him a fear of rejection that made him skittish of anything but the most basic of physical relationships. Jordan, the Earl of Blackmore from Forbidden Lord, saw himself as unable to love. And my latest hero Anthony Dalton … Well, I’ll leave that to you to find out. But I must admit that I have a soft spot for Anthony. His chickens have come home to roost, and they’re laying eggs all over his comfortable rakehell life. He handles it pretty poorly at…

I write in a room lined with beloved books – it’s like being with old friends. I know chunks of some of these keepers by heart. For some reason it’s usually dialogue I remember, some favorite exchange between the characters. I love the banter that takes place between a hero and heroine, particularly where they’re talking about one thing, but there’s a delicious sexual undercurrent underlying the whole conversation. I’m not talking about suggestiveness, but banter as a sexy duel, a form of courtship, a dance, a game that neither can lose. Good banter always makes me smile.Some books, some heroes, lend themselves to it more than others. For me, it’s usually the hero who starts it. For instance, here’s an example from my current book, THE STOLEN PRINCESS, where the Regency hero gets the heroine all hot and bothered with just a few teasing words. She gave him a severe look. “I told you, I have no desire to put myself under the thumb of any man, ever again.” “But it wasn’t my thumb I was thinking of.” He said it with such a— such a wicked, laughing look she was hard put to know what to say. So…

When I first started writing, I hardly dared to dream. I banged away on a semi-decrepit laptop in my attic apartment in New Haven, Connecticut (yes, really, an attic…servants’ quarters, actually; I kept looking with no success for the butler…), working on my debut novel, And Only to Deceive, with only the briefest someday-maybe-if-I’m-good-and-lucky-this-will-get-published thoughts. I’d chosen the location for the novel carefully—wanted to use settings familiar to me. Places I’d actually been. I studied abroad in college, living in London, and that seemed an easy starting point. Two trips to Paris had cemented the city in my soul, and a recent visit to Greece had wholly seduced me. I was confident I could capture the essentials of each location. But what next? I’d joked for a long time that my writing career was a thinly veiled attempt to justify my travel plans, but I’d never really let myself believe that someday, just maybe, I could be an author and jet about the world on research trips. I kept those thoughts far from my brain, focusing instead on writing. It’s the best thing an aspiring author can do—nothing is more important than crafting the best books possible—while all the while…

Some years ago I sat in a movie theater watching, The Perfect Storm. I must have been the only one present who did not know this was a true story, therefore the ending set in the proverbial stone of historical fact. Up until the point all three of the heroes perished, I had been waiting for that miraculous intervention, anything that would save them. When the movie ended, I was so aggravated that I had sat through the entire movie and had nothing but a sense of doom to show for my time. So my question to you is: what is the point of a movie or a book if it does not end with at least the hope that the characters we suffer with will be happy when the story ends. This is one of the reasons I don’t trust mainstream fiction or movies that are supposed to have a meaningful message to us poor, beleaguered souls of humanity. Too often, such entertainment leaves me depressed. In addition, because I am a writer, I have concluded that it is a lot easier for an author to give a book or a movie a sad ending than it is for…

Great romances often have a mythic underpinning that adds depth and resonance. So a road romance can echo The Odyssey or a Harlequin Presents can hark back to the universal themes of Cinderella. I believe readers, even if not consciously aware of these patterns, recognize the structure in their subconscious minds. So the satisfaction we get at the end of The Ugly Duckling when the duckling after all his trials turns into the beautiful swan is the same satisfaction we get at the end of a great love story where the plain governess snags the fabulously glamorous Regency rake who recognizes her inner beauty. One of my favorite fairytales is Beauty and the Beast so it’s no surprise it’s behind a lot of my stories. Beauty is a lot gutsier and more proactive than many fairytale heroines (I mean, Sleeping Beauty basically…sleeps!). Although she’s sure it means her death, Beauty offers herself up as the Beast’s prisoner to save her father. She’s also got some great values although perhaps a financial adviser mightn’t go astray. Still, it’s a lovely moment when after the sisters have asked for everything that walks and talks from their father, Beauty asks for nothing more…