LOOKING BACK OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS: AN EARLY PRIMULA INTERVIEW

1. How did you start writing erotica? I was a struggling single mum and started writing erotica when I was rejected by Mills & Boon because my sex scenes were too explicit. I decided to try my hand at turning explicit into something sellable, turned the sex scene in question into a short story called 'Man in a Cage' and sold it to the now defunct magazine 'For Women.' The indescribable euphoria at being paid £150 for what amounted to an hour's escapism persuaded me that this, among other types of writing, was something I could do.

2. What's your favourite published work and why? My favourite published work after three novels, two novellas and numerous short stories, is my latest, The
   
   Golden Locket, the second of my Unbreakable Trilogy for Avon Books coming out in paperback on December 19th.  Having cut my teeth on book one, The Silver Chain, I feel this second book has given me even more freedom to write as I want, within the parameters of erotica.
3. Where do you draw your inspiration from? My first stories came from being a lonely single mum who exchanged a very varied romantic/sex life in London, travelling/partying a lot, to being alone with my little boy and in need not only of company, but of money! My inspiration came from frustration, the dating experiences I'd had, but expanding to take inspiration depending on my mood and encounters. It now comes from a mixture of something I've experienced, something someone has told me, something I've seen or read, eaten or drunk, somewhere I've travelled, but the majority, once I have the kernel, comes from my imagination. Then I allow myself total freedom to roam!
4. Do you have any unusual writing rituals? Not really. I just have to dive in as soon as my family (husband, lodgers and 3 sons) are out of the house and on the days when I'm not working part time. I have a particular sofa in a particular room during the week, and I work on my bed at weekends if I have a deadline. I allow myself the odd break during the week day with day time TV or cooking shows.
5. Who is your favourite character from one of your stories and why? Possibly my favourite character is from one of my short stories who is a very glamorous cougar MILF, the mother of a gorgeous twenty something boy who has gorgeous friends she starts to seduce one by one. Not based on fact, I hasten to add.
6. Do your nearest and dearest know what you do and if so what was their reaction? My nearest and dearest have differing views. My husband dines out on the fact that I wrote 'Man in a Cage' when I was his secretary, and therefore in his time! I wrote it in a lunch hour and was already half in love with him altough he upped and married someone else, separated and divorced before we were finally able to get together. He's now very proud, but says it's really for women. My parents, older generation and Catholic to boot, disapprove even though I'm writing for a mainstream publisher and although I guess I can't blame them, it's a source of angst at the moment. Thank goodness for pseudonyms! My eldest son, now 25, says he was teased as a teenager when his mates saw my books on the shelves in the house. He used to turn the spines to the wall. Now most of the books are online, nobody is any the wiser.
7. What was your ideal career when you were a child? I have wanted to be a writer ever since I wrote a novel when I was eight years old!
8. How do you get in the mood for writing? If I have a deadline I write even if I'm not in the mood. Otherwise I make several very strong cups of coffee in the day time, or big glasses of wine at night.
9. What is the best writing tip you've ever been given? Best writing tip was from my most steadfast editor and subsequently a writing workshop tutor. Plough on and get the first draft done and complete. Go over it then. Otherwise you spend weeks going over the first lines, first chapters, and never make progress.
10. How do you get round writer's block? If I get writer's block I might award myself a morning or a day off, but I will force myself to write something, first words of a new scene, a scene of dialogue, an outline of the rest of the novel, the next day. After years of doing exams and a degree, that's the moment I approach it as an academic exercise.
11. Which of your characters would you bring to life and why? I would like to bring Gustav Levi to life, the hero of my Unbreakable Trilogy. I'd like to shake him up a bit. And then sleep with him
12. What are you working on at the moment? Currently I am waiting for my editor to send back the edits of Book 3 of my Unbreakable Trilogy, The Diamond Ring, where my hero and heroine, are even more committed to each other - but face the most dangerous threat yet.
13. What is your biggest writing challenge and did you succeed? I had to rewrite the second half of The Silver Chain which was a little demoralising at the time, and incredibly difficult, but when you are with a heavyweight publisher you simply have to get on with it to meet contractual obligations and the deadlines. That's the reality of being a published writer. It's not all chewing one's pen and staring out of the window, or signing books for breathless fans. It's a business activity like any other. But the faith my publishers have in me has hugely encouraged me, too.
14. What has been your greatest achievement? My greatest achievement, apart from obtaining a contract to write a trilogy for Harper Collins, was my first solo collection of short stories, Random Acts of Lust, for Xcite Books. Short story writing is my first love.