Author Spotlight: Romantic Suspense Author Kristine Cayne

I’d like to welcome spicy romantic suspense writer, Kristine Cayne, author of Deadly Obsession. Before we learn about Deadly Obsession—including a giveaway—let’s see what Kristine has to say…

1. When did you start writing?

I started taking some writing classes at a local community college in 2004 (or there about). But it wasn’t until 2009 that I really began to take things seriously and started writing Deadly Obsession. After that, things snowballed.

2. If you write in other genres, what are they? What has your experience been with writing in more than one genre?

Because my first short story, Un-Valentine’s Day, was published as part of an anthology with other authors from the UK Kindle Users Forum, I had to keep it PG, so this story is a sweet contemporary. I learned a lot writing such a compact story (it’s about 9K words whereas my Deadly Vices novels are around 120K). It was a stretch for me, but I think it turned out very well.

3. Sum up your current WIP in one to three sentences.

Adrenaline-pumping, dangerous situations. Hunky firemen with hero complexes. Hot sex that sets the page—and the reader—on fire.

4. What’s your ultimate goal as a writer? How close are you to achieving that goal?

My goal is to have enough books and readers that I can write full-time. Writing in a no-stress environment is a pleasure, an out-of-body experience for me. But when I’m trying to squeeze pages in between my day job, promo, family, vacations, etc. it becomes another item on my to-do list, one more thing to feel guilty about when I don’t have time to get to it.

How close am I to reaching this goal? Not close enough.

5. Do you have any quirky writing habits?

I wouldn’t say I have any quirky habits, but I am a plotter and find it very difficult to write even a word until I know in a fair amount of detail what will happen in the story. I also need to know my characters as well as I know my friends. That isn’t to say I need to know everything about them, but I do need to know what kind of person they are, what reactions they would have in certain situations, and how they are in bed!

6. What do you love about being a writer? What do you hate?

I love the research—learning about new cultures, new professions, new languages, and new places. I believe it makes the books deeper and helps the reader to understand the characters and their motivations better.

What I hate the most about writing is when the story refuses to come. This happens when I’m too stressed about getting the pages done. Sometimes, the best way for me to get passed this is to step away from the computer, pick up a pen and a notebook and go write somewhere else. If I’m at my desk too long, it starts to feel like a job. The pen and notebook give me the freedom to write wherever I want and it feels less final than the words on a screen. When I do this, the words start to flow.

7. What kind of characters do you enjoy writing the most?

I really enjoy writing alpha males, but so far, none of my heroes have been emotionally stunted. They aren’t assholes, but they are as much like real men as I can make them. For example, no alpha male is going to rhapsodize about the highlights in a woman’s hair. If he likes a woman’s hair, he’ll wrap it around his fist, yank her against his chest, and kiss the daylights out of her.

8. Are you a plotter, pantser or a little of both? Describe how a story comes together for you.

I’m a definite plotter. In fact, I can’t write until I have the story plotted. In 2009, I was lucky enough to meet the extraordinary Cherry Adair at a Romance Extravaganza. She invited all the RWA members back to her house for tea. And that is when the Cherry Plotters plotting group was born. Cherry showed us her plotting method using colorful post it notes for threads and characters. That was really a huge milestone for me in my writing career. Since then, the group which consists of several published and unpublished authors including Cherry Adair, Shelli Stevens, Laurie London, Rebecca Clark, and Kira Brady, meets monthly to plot new stories for our readers.

9. If you’re in a critique group, how long have you been together and how did you meet?

Dana Delamar (www.danadelamar.com) is my critique partner. We met in 2010 when we were both on the board of our local RWA chapter. At that time, the draft of Deadly Obsession had been written (and rewritten), but it was in serious need of review and editing. Dana was in a similar situation. Luckily we both write romantic suspense, and even more luckily, we complement each other’s skills very well. And last summer, we decided to embark on the indie-publishing journey together. Without Dana, Deadly Obsession (an all my stories after that) would never have seen the light.

10. What are you working on now?

I’m working on finalizing a novelette called, “Aftershocks,” that will be included in Romance in the Rain: A Seattle Anthology (to be released in August or September 2012). The stories are all set in Seattle, beginning in the 1850’s through the near future. In each story, the hero or the heroine is a member of the Caldwell family. The anthology features Marianne Stillings (www.mariannestillings.com), a romantic suspense author you may know, whose contribution is a fantastic World War II story about the WAFS – the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron.

My novelette, “Aftershocks”, is a fast-paced story about Jamie Caldwell whose estranged wife and child are trapped in a collapsed building during a major earthquake. Jamie and his technical rescue team must fight against time and nature to save them.

“Aftershocks” is the starting point of a new series I’m starting that will star the members of my fictional Seattle FD Technical Rescue Team.

When an Oscar-winning movie star meets a department-store photographer…

 
Movie star Nic Lamoureux appears to have a playboy’s perfect life. But it’s a part he plays, an act designed to conceal a dark secret he carries on his shoulders. His empty days and nights are a meaningless blur until he meets the woman who fulfills all his dreams. She and her son are the family he’s always wanted—if she can forgive a horrible mistake from his past.
 

A Hollywood dream…

 
Lauren James, a widowed single mother, earns barely enough money to support herself and her son. When she wins a photography contest and meets Nic, the man who stars in all her fantasies, her dreams, both professional and personal, are on the verge of becoming real. The attraction between Lauren and Nic is instant—and mutual. Their chemistry burns out of control during a photo shoot that could put Lauren on the fast track to a lucrative career.
Becomes a Hollywood nightmare.
But an ill-advised kiss makes front-page news, and the lurid headlines threaten everything Nic and Lauren have hoped for. Before they know what’s happening, their relationship is further rocked by an obsessed and cunning stalker who’ll stop at nothing—not even murder—to have Nic to herself. When Nic falls for Lauren, the stalker zeroes in on her as the competition.

And the competition must be eliminated.

If you liked the blurb, take a peek at the excerpt for Deadly Obsession:

Trying to get some more hands-on action from the cute photographer, Nic placed his hand behind his neck, crooking his head back at an awkward angle. When she shook her head, he swallowed a laugh. She set her camera on the nightstand and tugged on his shoulder to pull it forward. He resisted and, when she let go, rolled onto his back. Eyes closed, he lay there, waiting.

Lauren shook his shoulder. “Nic.”

He opened his eyes and met her concerned gaze. What the hell was wrong with him? He’d spent most of the night watching TV, but still…

He’d never fallen asleep on the job.

A loud commotion in the hallway startled him. Heart pounding, he jack-knifed in the bed. The door flew open and slammed against the wall. Without waiting to see who it was, he jumped up and pulled Lauren back. With the bed between her and the door, he pushed her to the floor. If the assailant had a gun, she’d be safe. Feet apart, fists clenched, he turned to face the intruder.

Relief crashed over Nic when he recognized several members of the paparazzi squeezing into the room. He helped Lauren to her feet. Her eyes were glazed with confusion. Coming here without a bodyguard had been more than stupid; it had been irresponsible. The reporters would wonder why he’d reacted so aggressively, and he absolutely didn’t want them to catch wind of his troubles with the stalker. He owed it to Vivian to turn this near fiasco into a photo op.

There was only one solution. With a resigned sigh, he pulled Lauren close, crushing her breasts against his chest.

“Oh no, you don’t,” she hissed. “I’m not one of your Paparazzi Girls.”

She wasn’t happy, but what could he do? Nic The Lover always found a Paparazzi Girl when cameras were around. His gaze darted between her and the photographers. He arched a brow.

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. Do it.”

He bent down and brushed his lips against hers. For the first few seconds, she didn’t kiss him back, but she didn’t push him away, either. Then, on a sigh, she leaned into him and her arms locked around his neck. His tongue darted out to taste her bottom lip. Mmm… cherry—his new favorite flavor. When her mouth opened, he didn’t hesitate.

He dove in. And drowned.

He’d meant this to be a quick kiss, only he couldn’t stop. His lips traced a path to her throat. Cupping her bottom with his hands, he lifted her up, grinding against her. She moaned. It was a beautiful sound, one he definitely wanted to hear again.

If you want to pick up this great read, check out these links:

Good news! The ebook version of Deadly Obsession is currently on sale for only 99cents!
Amazon ebook: http://bit.ly/JN8yT4
Amazon print: http://bit.ly/Ot8EQJ

For other retailers, click here for direct links: http://kristinecayne.blogspot.com/p/deadly-obsession.html
For details on book 2, Deadly Addiction, please click here: http://kristinecayne.blogspot.com/p/deadly-addiction.html

If you’d like to learn more about Kristine, check out these links:

New Releases List (http://kristinecayne.blogspot.com/p/new-releases-list.html) or
Website (http://www.kristinecayne.com)
Blog (http://kristinecayne.blogspot.com/)
Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/KristineCayneAuthor)
Twitter (http://twitter.com/KristineCayne)
Goodreads (http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5428452.Kristine_Cayne)

Kristine: As an independent author, I truly appreciate the support of fellow writers, like Lynnette, who share their blogs to help other authors find new readers. And the readers are fabulous. It’s truly heartwarming to find a new review or receive an email or a message from a perfect stranger telling you how much they enjoyed your story. It’s like an injection of the world’s best drug.

Now for the giveaway… I’ll let Kristine explain…

I am giving away 2 ebooks (via Smashwords coupon) – winners choice of whether it will be Deadly Obsession or Deadly Addiction. I will pick the winners using random.org from the comments – email address must be included to participate.

Lynnette, thank you so much for sharing your blog with me and allowing me to meet your wonderful readers!

Thanks for visiting, Kristine!

Lynnette Labelle
www.labelleseditorialservices.com