The Next Big Thing

So we all know I'm not a huge fan of these chain blog things, but my pal Toni Dwiggins rarely asks me for anything, so when she does, there's a 99.999% chance that I'm going to say yes.

That said, this Next Big Thing thing is actually kind of a fun idea. The deal is that I send you back to the blog of the person who tagged me (she's awesome, so read all about her book, the latest in her forensic geology series); then I answer a few questions about my latest book (I can do that); then I send you forward to a group of my friends.

Problem is, I was apparently not persuasive enough to get five of my writer buddies to participate. Oh well.

Here's the link to Toni's blog: http://tonidwiggins.com/page3.php

And here's my series of questions:

What is the title of your next book?

I actually don't yet have a "next book" in the works yet. I've floated ideas back and forth with a co-writer, but nothing strong enough to even talk about has materialized yet. Therefore I'll answer the remaining questions based on the one book I do have out there, Strange Kisses, which is a collection of shorts.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

A friend suggested I should write some erotica. So I did.

What genre does your book fall under?

Some people would call it erotica, some romance, I fondly refer to it as "straight-up porn."

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

Heh, I have a feeling it would be a direct-to-video release. I never intended for my characters to be specific people, so they don't really have physical descriptions. The intention was to allow the reader to imagine whomever they wanted in each role.

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?

It's a quick, fun read designed to get your blood pumping, but there's a depth the average reader doesn't see.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I self-published it, more as a challenge to myself than anything else.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

The short story that sparked the whole thing hung around for years, but when I decided to pull together an anthology, start to finish, maybe about three months. Because I'm primarily an editor, my own writing tends to get stuck on a back burner while I'm busy working everyone else's writing. (But I'm not complaining. I love editing.)

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Surprisingly, my influences don't necessarily come from my genre. There's Safe With Me by Shaina Richmond, but our styles aren't that similar. My biggest influences come from the writers for whom I edit. William Vitka and Tony Healey both affected the way I string sentences these days and they both write sci-fi/horror/pulp.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Aaron Bloom gave me the nudge I needed. He sort of planted the seed that got me thinking I should just go ahead and do it.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

It's absolutely filthy, like, Fifty Shades filthy, but the difference is that I know better than to release a book without having it properly edited first.

Now, visit a few of my buddies:

Joshua Unruh

Tony Healey (Yeah, Toni D. got to him first so this is a total cheat.)

William Vitka

If anyone else gets back to me, I'll update. Until then, pretend I can't count to five. I'm an editor, not a mathematician.

Happy Reading!