Thank you for taking the time to interview with us. Teresa’s newest release is Tigress By the Tail: The Moon, which came out in eBook on 15 July, her full length Paranormal Romance novel!
PLEASE LIST ALL WEBSITES WHERE YOU CAN BE FOUND, WHERE YOUR BOOKS CAN BE PURCHASED, ETC.
1. When/how did you know you wanted to write?
TERESA: That’s a really difficult question. I have written bits and pieces since I can remember, and created stories in my head I never shared with a soul for years and years. I even once wrote a short story about an ancestor of mine, who’d suffered quite a bit before finding his place in Virginia. I’ve always wanted to write novels, but never thought I could hold an audience. It wasn’t until I read Christine Feehan’s Dark Series that my mind began to whirl, changing the hobby into something more serious. I knew immediately I’d found my niche. Feehan’s books were the first paranormal romanced I’d read. Something about them clicked on a switch, powering those stories into my head into other directions.
2. How long did it take you to become published?
TERESA: I wrote my first “Story” which was fan fiction, in February of 2006. I then moved into my own series, which has yet to see the light of day, but around August 2007, I decided to push my stories in a new direction. My first “couple” came to me late one evening, and three months later I had my first release.
3. Who are some of your favorite authors?
TERESA: Wow, there are so many to choose from. My current, absolute favorite is Larissa Ione. Her new demon series is awesome! I call her the JR Ward of Demondom. So if you haven’t checked it out yet, get to the book store, fast! Of course there’s also JR Ward, Feehan, Kenyon, almost all the greats of paranormal romance.
4. Who do you count as your literary influences?
TERESA: That’s difficult. At first, I believe I sounded like a mini Christine Feehan when I began writing. Probably because I used her work to teach myself craft in the early days. I didn’t know what I was teaching myself, but what I learned was good stuff. It’s my foundation. I now study any book I consider great, to figure out what makes them so great. I could never write in the style of many I review – my style is my own, but it’s still awesome to understand how they do things.
5. How long does it usually take for you to research a book?
TERESA: That really depends. SheWolf took about two hours of research, as I’ve been familiar with wolf behavior for more than 20 years. As a Canine obedience instructor, I often review the wolf for instinctual behaviors to understand the variety of breeds out there. Mostly I researched some of their mating habits. Tigress took about three days of intense study – Again, I’ve been fascinated with tigers for many years, so I simply reinforced what I knew. I have other works that have taken much more, as they are set in Egypt, and those books have taken constant research through the development of the series. There’s no set “I researched this many hours.” It’s more of a “I had a question about this, so I sat at the computer till I learned all I needed to know.” Having been to Egypt, I’m fascinated with their current and historical culture, so again, I’m leaning toward what I know.
One day I’m going to take the huge leap and start writing a story where I know NOTHING about the main topic, location or history and have to delve deep. But the odd thing about me is I love information. So there’s very little I can think of that I would write about that I haven’t at least reviewed to some extent. Animals and history are two of my biggest hobbies. Merging the two is awesome. J
6. Many authors are doing strictly e-books, do you think this is just a trend, or does it spell the end of real books?
TERESA: I think it’s not exactly a trend, and I don’t think it’s the end of print either. I think eBooks have their place, just as print does. For me, eBooks are typically shorter than print, (though Tigress is the size of a Harlequin). Print pushes the 100K word length regularly. My opinion is it will be a very long time before paper gives way completely to eBooks. Perhaps in twenty or thirty years, but not any time soon. Again this is just my opinion, based off the people I know, and their preferences. Remember, there are a lot of romance readers out there who still don’t even own a computer, hard to believe, I know.
7. How long does it take for you to write books?
TERESA: Usually 3-6 months.
8. Is there any character in your books that you can really relate to?
TERESA: Anna from SheWolf. I remember one reviewer said she could be the girl next door. It’s funny because when I wrote her, I felt this huge kinship with her. She’s not me, by any means, but her love of animals and her strength are things I hope are inside of me.
9. Do you see yourself writing in the same genre in 10 years? If not then what?
TERESA: That’s hard to say, but right now, I’d say probably. I do have an idea or two for a contemporary, but mostly I love paranormal. It’s possible I may float into space and try my hand at Science Fiction as well.
10. What advice do you give to those who are just starting out or trying to become published?
TERESA: Keep learning, keep writing, and don’t give up. Surround yourself with people who are willing to help you learn and give you honest advice about your work. And remember, Rules are made to be broken, so long as you know the rule exists.
11. What do you do when preparing to write a story?
TERESA: Oh now this is embarrassing. When I sit to write, if I can’t “Get into it”, I go take a bath. I’m one of those people who love to relax in the tub, and when I’m there, my mind goes constantly – on the events of the day, or whatever. But when I’m struggling with writing, I go sit in the tub, and imagine the scene I’m working on. About 75% of the time I come out of the tub and write a SUPER scene.
12. Where do your story ideas come from? Do you use people you know as characters sometimes or even sometimes a certain event from real life happenings?
TERESA: I have this joke that one day I’m going to use one of my old bosses as the villain in a story and kill him off. But no, my characters are totally invented. The stories are as well. Sometimes I’ll see something on TV or in a movie that will send me off on a tangent – my mind says “Well what if they did this?” and before I know it, my mind is creating a scene instead of paying attention to what I’m watching. As an example, say you’re watching the new movie Hancock, and the next thing I know, I’ve created this race of beings with special abilities with DIFFERENT weaknesses and DIFFERENT rules to their world. All because of Hancock, who’s different from humans. My scene resembles nothing like Hancock, but could be initiated entirely from one phrase or one word I saw. I once read an author says she gets ideas from everything in her life. That’s what I do.
13. What is your favorite part of writing?
TERESA: The creation process. I so love to sit and daydream, and create these images in my head of these people. Their lives become something special to me. My husband just shakes his head when I forget to do something because my head is trying to grapple with a new scene. He calls me space cadet lately.
14. Do you have any projects you are currently working on?
TERESA: I’m currently working on the sequel to SheWolf. I don’t want to give any secrets away yet, but I think everyone will love it at least as much as SheWolf, if not better! The hero is truly in pain, and the heroine isn’t much better. Together they have to come together to save lives, save a pack, and make peace with their hearts.
15. Did it take a lot of rejections for you to finally get published or was it pretty easy for you?
TERESA: No, nothing about submitting is easy for an author. For me, I kept submitting over and over again this story I have that was my first book. As a first book, any author will tell you it’s not a good idea to get too attached. I did. And still am, for that matter. But SheWolf, my first published work, I submitted to four places, and it was actually accepted by two, with great comments by the other two. It was very exciting to realize that I really can write, and I just need to redo that old book. And I will. One day you guys will be picking up the Petiri Series off your book shelves and saying “I heard about that!”
16. Do you write your stories out with pencil and paper first or do you work straight on the computer?
TERESA: On computer. Always on computer. However, I’ve recently taken to keeping a small notebook with me, in case I’m out and dialogue pops in my head, or a troublesome scene works itself out. It’s been very helpful.
17. You just recently were published. How does it make you feel?
TERESA: Excited, happy, thrilled. All those awesome words you use to describe joy. I cried when SheWolf was accepted. I cried again when I got the book cover, and I cried again the night it was released (I stayed up till 2 am, waiting). Tigress is equally exciting. I hope I never get blasé about a book release!
18. Getting back to your books coming out soon. Tell us a little about what to expect from them.
TERESA: Contrary to my first two books, I do not intend to stick with the female of the species. The follow on to SheWolf is more about the hero than the heroine. I intend to push the envelope of shifters, not just on their animalistic behavior, but also on how they deal with the world around them.
19. When and where can we purchase your books?
TERESA: SheWolf is available at Freya’s Bower, and Tigress by The Tail is available on Fictionwise. (I’ll give you the buy link for Tigress later, if it comes out in time).
http://www.freyasbower.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=105&zenid=24c2962a16ece4ef63ca45c50fe9d92e
20. How do you feel about fans doing fan fiction and/or roleplaying on the web based on your or other author's works?
TERESA: Since I started out that way it’s not nice of me to say I don’t like it, now is it? LOL. Seriously, I don’t mind it. It’s flattery. So long as they give credit to the original author and never attempt to publish the works, I think it’s just fine. Somewhere on my hard drive I think I still have that one fan fiction piece I wrote. I’m proud of it, since I had no clue what I was doing. For me, it wasn’t enough, though, because it wasn’t my world, but another’s. If that’s what makes them happy to write, I say go for it. Just be careful to give credit to the Author who created the world you’re using.
Thanks again, Teresa, for joining us today.
Be sure to pick up your copy of Tigress by the Tail: The Moon.
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Disclaimer (because we don't have a choice): The views expressed by the guest blogger do not necessarily reflect those of The Deadly Vixens.
