1. What inspired you to write your first book? 
I love reading, but I think I want to read a book that doesn’t exist out there right now. I’m working on writing a series that appeals to me and hopefully to many others. I love genre fiction. It can be exciting, I feel like the characters are not often fully realized. I don’t mind a slow build, but I need to see a person by the end of the book. I love literary fiction. It can be beautiful, but also meandering and boring. A book about nothing is a hard sell to me. I want the best of both worlds!
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2. Writing can be a difficult job, what inspires you to keep going?
I want to know how the book ends. I have a general outline of what I want to happen, but I don’t always know how to get there. It’s fun to make up stories, and I honestly don’t think of it as a job, but an enjoyable way to pass the time.
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3. What are you working on now? What’s next?
I’m working on the second book of The Collection series. The first book focused on Jane and Lucien meeting and establishing a relationship, but the second book throws Cicero into the mix. Jane is a young woman with the long-term choices of her life screaming for attention. One of those choices is about who she wants to love and why she wants to love him.
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4. What’s your writing process, schedule, or routine?
I steal a few hours during the day when the kids are in school, and a few more at night when they’ve gone to bed and I haven’t yet mentally checked out. Some days are better than others!
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5. Who is your favorite book character of all time? Why?
Just this moment, I would say Alice from Alice in Wonderland. She has the characteristics as a child that I would love to see in more people. She’s honest, adventurous, and lacking the machinations of the adult mind.
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6. What advice would give to aspiring writers?
It’s not new advice, but write what you love and have realistic expectations. Have a source of income that will allow you to pursue writing without worrying about rent money. Starving artists look good on paper, not in real life.
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7. What’s your favorite quote? 
“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” -Oscar Wilde
There are so many different kinds of people in this world! Don’t stifle what makes you unique in order to fit in with the expected. You’ll only disappoint yourself.
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8. Who would you most like to have a cup of coffee with? (Dead or alive) Explain…
This is a difficult question. Not all the people I respect or find interesting are the kind of people with whom I would want to have coffee. Some of them are documented jerks. It would have to be someone funny, who didn’t have high expectations for the discussion, and who would be on their merry way if we didn’t hit it off. How about Jerry Seinfeld? He’s already doing a show where he has coffee with people, so it could be a tidy one-off meeting. He’s used to elaborate conversations about cosmically-unimportant minutiae. And, he’s funnier than most people in the world. Him. I choose him! (Plus, no need to reanimate a corpse.)
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9. What is your biggest pet peeve?
A lack of self-sufficiency. On a small scale, you will annoy me if you don’t bring your dishes to the sink after you eat. You wouldn’t like me when I’m annoyed.
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10. Tell us something quirky about you.
I am a dedicated introvert.
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11. Favorite comfort food?
Spaghetti and meatballs. Carbolicious.
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12. Star Wars or Star Trek? 
Star Trek. The characters are more real to me.
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13. Sunrises or Sunsets?
Sunsets! I’m a night owl, so if I’m seeing a sunrise it’s because I’ve been forced to get up early.
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