1. What inspired you to write your first book?
Life. My first novel, which will likely never see the light of day, was a bit autobiographical in that the characters were the people in my life. Everything seemed really heavy when I first put pen to paper and writing it all down in a way that I could explore the “what ifs” of my past helped me appreciate my present. From there, my imagination just couldn’t be quieted any longer and more stories joined my immature first attempt until I created something I was proud of and refined enough to publish.
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2. Writing can be a difficult job, what inspires you to keep going?
Haha! Writing becomes a bit of an addiction after a while. It can be extraordinarily soothing and therapeutic to wrestle with demons on the page. And, spending all day playing with imaginary friends is fun too. LOL Life just feels right when I’m creating a new story, but wrong when I’m not.
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3. What are you working on now? What’s next?
Right now I am working on a new take on the Little Red Riding Hood fable. I’m really excited about it and don’t want to give too much away, but it is going to be a very dark fantasy with a strong female main character. I tend to flip flop genres, so Hippies is a light, literary romance, and this next one will be very dark. I’m looking at a tentative July release for that one.
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4. What’s your writing process, schedule, or routine?
I usually wake up and do the zombie shuffle to the coffee pot, then get my son ready for school. We walk about half a mile through the woods to the bus stop. About that time the caffeine has hit my brain and I start thinking of the next scene in my story on the trek back. Some days I have to force it, others the words seem to spill out of me faster than I can get them down. Either way, I write until I pick him up from the bus stop after school.
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5. Who is your favorite book character of all time? Why?
Princess Alexia from Michael Stackpole’s Dragon Crown War Cycle. She is a strong female character who can take care of herself and hang with any male warrior, but is still a woman. One of my pet peeves is when a character starts out that way and ends up just being a… being mean and cold-hearted, or a complete pile of mushy goo that can’t hold her own fork. LOL
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6. What advice would give to aspiring writers?
Write. It sounds horribly simplistic, but that is the hardest part of being an author. You have to stop making excuses and just do it. Yes, the laundry must get done. Yes, the dishes need to be washed. Yes, you do have to go to work. But there are 24 hours in a day and you don’t need 12 of them to sleep. Whatever time you can sneak away, use it. Don’t waste your time dreaming about writing, and just write.
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7. What’s your favorite quote?
“The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.” Albert Einstein.
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8. Who would you most like to have a cup of coffee with? (Dead or alive) Explain… 
Albert Einstein because he was a quirky and creative person. I like quirky, it makes me feel less weird. And, I am not at all good at math or science, so I wouldn’t want to talk to him about specifics, but I would love to discuss his theories about the universe and our interaction with it. I studied philosophy in college and love a good discussion with someone who has an unconventional theory.
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9. What is your biggest pet peeve?
In “reality” I loathe repeating myself. I don’t mind clarifying, or repeating if someone was distracted, but saying the same thing over and over again because someone simply isn’t listening irritates the crap out of me. *cringe*
In literature my biggest pet peeve, the thing that will make me set down a book and never pick it up again, is character inconsistency. I see it a lot in certain genres and I just can’t stand it. If your character is going to be strong, keep them strong. A warrior doesn’t need to become a weakling simply because they meet someone. They just need to show MORE of their character, not less.
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10. Tell us something quirky about you.
Hmm… I love to blast my music until it almost hurts my ears, but can’t stand loud noises. I like loud music, but don’t like people screaming or yelling or thumping and bashing around. Strange, I know, but it grates on me. Oh! And squeaky hinges. *shiver* No thanks.
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11. Favorite comfort food?
This is going to be a little strange, but I love tuna noodle casserole. If I’m having a bad day I’ll cook one up and put on a pot of coffee. They don’t mix well, but those are my two biggest comfort foods.
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12. Star Wars or Star Trek?
Star Trek! I always wanted to be Counselor Troi or Captain Janeway. I think I could be a great empath, but Janeway is just awesome and being in control holds quite a bit of allure.
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13. Sunrises or Sunsets?
Well, mornings and I don’t necessarily get along well so I end up missing most sunrises. I love sunset walks. That time when the earth seems to settle itself down and the chaos of the day drifts down with the dew. It is that cosmic breath before closing eyes. I just love to be out at that time and watch the world tuck into bed.
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