Interview with a Male romantica author!

~ Cover Art by April Martinez ~

Dateline: Daytona, Florida, sometime last month. I'd just sold a hot paragraph to Louie the Crab for his Donkey Spankers and Lycra Weekly magazine. Feeling pretty good at the big cash payoff, I was walking along minding my own business and counting the readies when there was a rattle of stiletto heels behind me. Before I knew it a classy dame had me by the lapels of the trenchcoat and pinned against the wall. I looked into the flawless face and steely blue eyes just inches from my own.

"Silver!" I gasped.

Minty-fresh breath gusted against my face. "You've been avoiding me, A J," she purred.

I gently pried her hands from the lapels. "Yeah, well..." Snappy repartee, I grant you, but hey, you never saw Silver with that look in her eye. I knew what she wanted. It was –

"The interview, A J," she said. "Give me the interview, or the world will know the truth behind the story of you, the can-can dancer and the elephant on the Butte Montmartre last year."

Hot damn! What a night that was! But I knew I was beat and held up my hands. "Okay, okay! You want it, you got it."

As luck would have it we were right by a bar, the Mai Tai. When we walked in Paige Burns was holding court amidst a horde of admirers as she took on and beat all-comers at thumb wrestling. We chose a booth in the corner away from the crowd. I ordered root beer. Silver chose something exotic that melted the cocktail swizzler – and the cherry it was stuck through. As usual she was in a happier mood now she had her own way. Then she let me have it…

"Very few men write romance, let alone erotic romance, what made you decide to go that route?"

"I joined the wrong queue… Ah, no, I blame my esteemed critique partner for this! When she read some of my earlier work she said "You're stopping the action at the bedroom door: Why?" I really couldn't give a good answer and went out and read some of the great books out there and decided I could write romantica.

"A general charge leveled at guys is we can't handle emotions, either IRL or on the page. Crap! Evidence to the contrary we're human beings, we have feelings, and the gods know I've been through the romantic mill-race more than a few times. With any writer, it comes down to using life experiences to create a good story that entertains the reader. I hope I succeed."

"I think you have, but don’t men usually write thrillers or sci-fi?"

"Oh? Think of Anne McAffrey, Elizabeth Moon, Barbara Kamazin, et. al! Classy sci-fi writers, every one. As for thrillers - hmm! Well, yeah, men do write them more than women, and it seems the more Greek letters they use in the title the better! When you see a cover on a doorstep-sized book bearing the legend "The Phi-Alpha-Kappa Gambit," you can bet top dollar it ain't written by a member of the fairer sex!"

"I’ve read Mr. Grey and the Hotel Ghosts, and boy, are the sex scenes hot. Are they based on experience? Are you looking for a research assistant? ;) "

"Thank you! – some - and yes ;) Applicants, please go to the link below…"

Silver pouts a bit, I think she was hoping I’d pull out an application. She recovers quickly though and pins me with that “I dare you to answer” look.

"What’s the sexiest thing you’ve ever done for a woman?"

"Hmm! O-kayyy. We were walking through the Erzebet Ter in Budapest at midnight after a great night out. The moon was riding high over the city and she said "I want you – now!" We made love under the arches. It kinda set the seal on things."

"Damn, AJ, you tiger you, but that sounds like something she instigated. What about you? I know there’s a bit of naughty in you somewhere."

"lol, I'm like an iceberg – you only see 10% of the naughtiness above the surface ;) O-kayyy Two. My then girlfriend and I were apart for several weeks. I wrote erotica pieces for her in which we were the central characters and I described what I did for her in exquisite detail and sent them in e-mail attachments. When we next met, I acted them out…"

Silver fanned herself. "Uh huh!" she said softly. After a pause she launched another question at me from left field.

"Rumor has it that you’re a kilt wearing man, is it true what they say about men in kilts?"

"Oh, we're like the brand of battery – Ever Ready!"

Silver sips her drink, her eyes wide at the thought. She clears her throat…

"Does your family know what kind of books you write and what have they said about it?"

"They do, but being British, they pretend not to…"

She laughs infectiously, and I notice a crowd of young men are starting to form in our little corner.

"What’s your favorite swear word?"

"'Oh bugger!' A good old-fashioned English catch-all for most occasions. Of course, it literally refers to anal sex… "

“I love British swear words. Funny enough, my favorite word refers to sex in general.” She winks and I think one of the young men in the crowd faints.

"If you were on a deserted island, which celebrity would you want with you?"

"Claudia Black (Aeryn Sun in Farscape, Shazza in Pitch Black). Man! When wearing that skin-tight leather outfit she could start a riot in a monastery just by walking past…"

"What’s your best pick up line?"

"'Have some chocolate!' Mind you, being a chocoholic myself it's a moot point if there's any left to give away…"

"That would work for me, doll. So what’s next? More Grey? How about just more AJ?"

"I'm happy to say Liquid Silver has accepted the next Mr. Grey story, Spirit from the Sky! The cover's posted here, and the first batch of edits should hit me between the eyes any day now. There's a whole raft of Mr. Grey stories featuring Martin Grey and Claudia Mackenzie stacked up in my ideas file. The next is in first draft form, and I've begun research for a Mr. Grey story set in Claudia's spiritual homeland of Scotland.

"As for more A J - Hmm! I'll be in Indianapolis in my adopted State of Indiana for three weeks from the end of next month. Sometime soon I hope to move there permanently. I will be joining the local chapter of the RWA - a great bunch, really warm and welcoming. I'm also looking forward to the July 4th parades and saying Happy Birthday, USA! As sure as the sun rises I'll be visiting some of the bookstores too. Maybe I'll meet some of my readers there?"

She nodded and smiled. I got the impression the interview was over and she'd let me off lightly – I think! Taking courage in both hands, I asked her to dance. Silver nodded again and I led her out onto the floor.

I'd forgotten about the stilettos…