1. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I live in Cleveland, Ohio. I am a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA) and a member of the Northeast Ohio Chapter of RWA. I’m also registered with the GWA (Guild Writers of America). In my spare time, I enjoy reading, cooking and spending time with my family.
2. Describe your book Yearning For Love in 30 words or less.
Is a romance story of a man and a woman who both are looking for that missing piece in their life. She needs love and he wants true love.
3. What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Intimate scenes are very hard for me to write because the reader has to feel the passion to believe it is real between the characters. I have to go deep in my mind and make these characters fall in love. To make that first kiss, touch or embrace perfect.
I want to WOW the reader not shock them. Throwing together a string of words that display passion doesn’t work of me. I have to make it believable to a point I want to call my heroine the next morning and ask her about the first time with her hero.
4. What books have had the greatest influence on you?
The Bible is the biggest influence of all. There are many books that have influenced me to write, and it is hard to name them all. I don’t just read straight romance novels, but I love suspense and mysteries. I even love ghost stories. Probably the only genres I don’t read are science-fiction, street lit and fantasy. My most loved authors are Stephen King, Alice Walker, Barbara Delinski, Carl Webber, Walter Mosley, and Jackie Collins, to name a few that I grew up reading since there weren’t many African-American authors in my day.
5. Briefly share with us what you do to market your book?
I use social media such as Facebook and Twitter. I have a blog and website where I will give-away copies and I use Bookbuzzr. Amazon is good for promoting if the book is doing well. They will recommend my books sometimes to readers. I used to attend book conferences but I work full-time so my travel is limited until I retire.
6. How do you spend your time when you are not writing?
I have a family I very active with. When I finish a project they get my time or I read books that I have waiting on my kindle that I haven’t gotten a chance to read. I’ll catch up on televisions shows I have DVR’d. It is amazing how much time I spend writing and what I miss, but being self-published, I have the option to push back release dates if my life becomes too complicated.
7. What are you working on next?
My next book is titled The Men Of CLE-FD (The Orlando Torres Story) and it is the second installment of my firefighter series. I love firemen and I think they should share the spotlight in novels with policemen, businessmen and your everyday blue-collar masculine men.
