Interview with Author Laura Kaye and Giveaway

Today I am happy to welcome to the blog author Laura Kaye. Laura has stopped by to answer some questions and is sharing some info on her newest book Her Forbidden Hero. Before I get to the questions, lets get to know a bit about Laura.

Voted Breakout Author of the Year in the 2011 GraveTells Readers’ Choice Awards, Laura is the bestselling and award-winning author of over a half-dozen books in paranormal, contemporary and erotic romance. Hearts in Darkness is the EPIC eBook Award Winner for Best Novella and HOLT Medallion Award of Merit Winner for Best Romance Novella, Forever Freed is the NJRW Golden Leaf Winner for Best Paranormal of 2011 and is a finalist for two GDRWA Booksellers’ Best Awards, and North of Need, the first book in the Hearts of the Anemoi series, is a finalist for a FF&P PRISM award, was named GraveTells’ Best Book of 2011 and won their 5-STAR Gold Heart Award, and won Sizzling Hot Read of the Year at Sizzling Hot Books. Laura lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.

Places to find Laura:

| Site | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Newsletter Sign Up |

First off, can you tell us a bit about you?
Thanks, I’d love to! But first, thank you for hosting me here! I write paranormal, contemporary and erotic romance. My 6th (Her Forbidden Hero, contemporary romance) and 7th (Seduced by the Vampire King, dark paranormal romance) books just released and my 8th (West of Want, fantasy romance) releases on July 10. I’m also a wife, mom to two young girls (8 and almost 6), college history professor, total vampire addict, and Marylander.

Did you always want to be a writer?
Not exactly. What I wanted to be from the time I was in high school was a teacher. In college, I realized I wanted to teach at the college level, and at that point, I know writing would be a part of my life because writing/publishing is an expected part of being an academic. Four years ago, I started writing fiction after a head injury rewired some of the circuits in my brain (I say that only half facetiously!), but now truly couldn’t live without it in my life.

What kind of writer are you? Pantser or Plotter?
Total Pantser. Characters come to me first, not plots. So it’s hard for me to plot because the story literally comes to me as I’m writing it. This is how Her Forbidden Hero came to me—first, just the image of a damaged man sitting in the near dark struggling to play the guitar. Now, I’ve gotten better about plotting. I can plot if I have to. But I really more enjoy the process of discovery that comes with writing and seeing what’s going to happen as it’s happening.

Where do your ideas come from?
A lot of things inspire me—music lyrics, turns of phrases, overheard snippets of conversation, real life stories. But where my ideas come from? I don’t know. I don’t feel like I “make up” stories so much as that they just come to me, or through me. It’s very exciting and feels like something special when it happens.

A la Twitter style, can you describe your book (or series) in 140 characters or less.
A tortured alpha hero & former Special Forces soldier struggles to resist his best friend's/teammate's little sister in #HerForbiddenHero

What are some of your favorite kinds of stories to read?
Truly, I can enjoy almost anything if the characters are compelling. However, my first love as a reader has always been all things supernatural. I grew up reading Stephen King and Anne Rice, and my current favorite authors are J.R. Ward and Sherrilyn Kenyon. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series is hands down my favorite, and I’ve reread a few of those books too many times to count! Recently, I’ve been totally sucked into Lisa Kleypas’s contemporary series about the Travises.

Do you have a favorite book and if so what is it?
There’s no way I could pick just one!!

What are the scenes that are the hardest for you to write?
I don’t struggle with types of scenes, per se, but I do find that I need to go back through a story and layer in emotional reaction. Physical blocking and dialogue flow easily in the first draft, but deepening the story usually takes a second pass.

If you could have dinner with any three authors, who would you choose and why?
Oh my!

• Stephen King – because he is my single longest favorite author and a master at storytelling.
• J.R. Ward – because she is my current favorite author, I saw her at the Romantic Times convention and fell even more in love with her, and I feel like a lot of what I know about writing male point of view I learned from her.
• Shakespeare – because we’re still retelling his stories 400 years later (plus, I’m a historian of the early modern era, and I could pick his brains about that, too!).

Last question, are you working on anything right now?
Yes! So many things, in fact! I’m currently writing the follow-up story to Her Forbidden Hero—the heroine’s brother Brady will get his own book which is tentatively set for release in late summer/early fall. Also, I’m gearing up for the release of West of Want, the second book in my Hearts of the Anemoi series, and my first book to release nationwide to bookstores! I’m so thrilled about that!


EXCLUSIVE GIVEAWAY: Her Forbidden Hero is set at the fictional Whiskey’s Music Roadhouse in Frederick, Maryland, and now you can own a T-Shirt from Whiskey’s! How fun is that? Two winners, open to international, sizes large and x-large available. Fill out the Rafflecopter form for your chance to win!

Good luck!

You always want what you can't have...

She's always been off-limits...

Former Army Special Forces Sgt. Marco Vieri has never thought of Alyssa Scott as more than his best friend's little sister, but her return home changes that...and challenges him to keep his war-borne demons at bay. Marco's not the same person he was back when he protected Alyssa from her abusive father, and he's not about to let her see the mess he's become.

...but now she's all grown up.

When Alyssa takes a job at the bar where Marco works, her carefree smiles wreak havoc on his resolve to bury his feelings. How can he protect her when he can't stop thinking about her in his bed? But Alyssa's not looking for protection--not anymore. Now that she's back in his life, she's determined to heal her forbidden hero, one touch at a time...

Places to Purchase:

| Amazon | Barnes & Noble |

Want to win some goodies from Laura? Check out what's up for grabs.

Up for grabs:

• 2 lucky winners will win a Whiskey's T-Shirt
• 1 lucky winner will win a eBook copy of  Her Forbidden Hero

To Enter:

• Leave a meaningful comment for Laura.
• Please fill out the Rafflecopter form below. 

Good Luck =)

a Rafflecopter giveaway