Please welcome to the stage, the fabulously talented Paranormal and Urban Fantasy Author, Riley Quinn. I was lucky enough to rub shoulders with Riley last year at the RWA conference, where we enjoyed too much sushi and passed each other too many times while on our way to book signings, book giveaways and the occasional class-meh. She's a super sweet gal, and I'm so glad she's planted her bottom here to let us all celebrate in her new release!!!

Getting down to business:

ME: We all have that creative piece in our brain that demands we express ourselves. If not, we wouldn’t be doing this crazy thing that takes so much sweat and tears. But, what would you say motivated you most to become an author?

Riley: For me, I think that would be those pesky voices in my head. I had characters living in my brain, acting out scenes. It wasn’t until I started writing those down that I realized how much writing revitalizes me and makes me happy.

ME: We know now why you do what you do, but I want to know where you get your ideas. If you’re like me, everyone is suspect to my overactive imagination. A nice man at Starbucks, playing the pay-it-forward game will probably be in my next shifter book. Do you suffer from this uncontrollable urge to create stories for everyone you pass?

Riley: Actually I don’t. At least, not consciously. My characters seem to rise out of my head and introduce themselves to me. They tell me their goals, dreams, about their life growing up. I get it all down on the myriad worksheets I use until I feel like I know them. Then I can figure out their story. I can’t ever remember a real-life person sparking a character for me, but as I said, perhaps it happens subconsciously.

Me: Now, I have a bad habit of writing in circles. It’s not intentional, but I have to really watch what I’m doing or I’ll end up repeating my first thought in a paragraph at the end. I just have to say that circular movement nags me. (See) Do you have any writing quirks that you wish you could squash?

Riley: I tend to repeat myself too. I know I don’t have to repeat it 5 times for the reader to get my point, but like you said, it’s unintentional. I also tend to pick a favorite word per story and use the heck out of it. At least with that, I now recognize when I’m doing it (most of the time, anyway) while I’m doing it. I usually highlight the word to fix later. I like to keep writing when I’m on a roll. Those kinds of things can be fixed later.

ME: Who is your favorite author and why?

Riley: I read so much and love so many. It’s kind of like your kids. You don’t have a favorite and you love them all equally, just in different ways. I do tend to read mostly urban fantasy and paranormal romance.

 ME: Everyone’s writing times vary and each story can have its own pace, but how long would you say it took to complete your last project?

Riley:  The last project I finished or the last project I started, because they are two different things. The last project I started (not counting the one I’m working on now) would be Blood Diamond, which released from The Wild Rose Press on December 1. I started it in January and finished in late March. I was working for a March 31 deadline and made it almost a week early.The last project I finished was Out of the Shadows, my full-length paranormal romance. I actually started this story 2 years ago for NaNoWriMo. About 2 weeks into November, I found out we were moving to Germany. Oh, and I had 4 weeks to pack up a 2400 sq. ft. house and deal with all the details involved with a transatlantic move, plus a full-time job, plus school. Well, you get the idea. I haven’t worked on it continuously, but I finished it up this past summer.

Me: Do you have a favorite tip you like to pass on to other writers? Is there a tip that a publisher/editor passed on to you that changed something you do in your writing?

Riley: My favorite tip is the one I got from a favored writer. That is to write. Keep at it. Be consistent. It’s the best way to improve your craft. Books and classes are all well and good, but if you’re not producing anything to try those techniques, it’s all theoretical.

Me: Now, on to the nitty gritty. What brings you to the other side, the “Dark” side of Romance? Why not contemporary or one of the other genres?

Riley: First of all, I have nothing against contemporary or any of the other genres. In fact, I’m planning a contemporary later this year. That being said, I think we all have a dark side. That side of us that we don’t show others. Urban fantasy and paranormal allows us to explore that dark side, expose it even, without fear of ridicule. Also, in a world where we feel that we can’t really make a difference, it’s fun to create an alternate universe where someone has special powers or abilities and we can save that world through them. Personally, I wouldn’t like having the fate of the world resting on my shoulders, but I sure do love to put it on my characters’.

Me: Where do you see the paranormal/UF/Fantasy/Scifi Genre heading? Is there anything that you’re tired of reading as a reader?

Riley: I don’t think it will ever go away. There are too many readers out there hungry for these kinds of stories with these kinds of stakes. It’s a challenge to us as writers, to provide them with fresh, entertaining stories that feed that need. I don’t know that there’s anything I’m tired of reading, per se, but I do look for the fresh spin or the new mythology behind someone’s worldbuilding.

Thank you so much for coming by and answering all of my questions. I really enjoyed learning even more about you and your writing. And for all my guest, please be sure to check out her website, it's absolutely beautiful. Links are below.

Also!!! Wait!!! Don't Go!!! Riley was kind enough to offer a book giveaway! Woo-Hoo!!! She and I would both like to know if you've ever been to the Congo? or what's the most exotic vacation you've had? Maybe you found diamonds and a hot guy on a frantic adventure...please share.

Leave a comment below and I'll reveal the winner on Friday!!

Here's Riley's newest release:

Blurb:

Dodging an angry warlord and running through the rain forest in Congo Brazzaville was not what Jillian St. James expected when she signed up with Doctors Without Borders. Yet that’s exactly what she gets after a mysterious visit from her brother.

Mercenary Mack Nichols doesn’t have much faith in humanity these days. When a beautiful young doctor denies being part of the theft of a blue diamond from his client, he doesn’t put much stock in her story.

Neither have reason to trust the other and their mutual attraction is an inconvenience to both. A betrayal and the reveal of an evil plan pit these two against an army. Can they put aside their doubts and work together to bring down a corrupt, power-hungry overlord or will their chance at love be over before it ever starts?

Excerpt:

“Are you all right, Jillian?”

The husky timber of his voice sent another shiver through her, this time having nothing to do with fear.

How could she be aroused after being scared so bad? Especially with a man like this one, a man who worked for the General. She was one sick puppy.

“Jillian?” A hand came down on her shoulder and she jumped.

Finally lifting her head, she ignored Mack and trained her attention on the log where she’d been sitting. As recognition set in, her entire body began to shake and her heart pounded so hard she feared cracking a rib. Dear God. A yellow-green snake with ridged scales lay in two pieces on the log she’d occupied. Eyes the same color of its body stared sightlessly toward the fire.

She swallowed, trying to wet her dry throat. “Is that—”

“An African Bush Viper? Yep. I think in the firelight, your hand must have looked like dinner.” Though the snake now lay dead, Mack’s voice still sounded strained.

She stood on shaky legs. “I didn’t even see it there.”

“I’m not surprised. It had coiled its tail around the branch overhead and dropped from there.”

If he hadn’t seen the highly poisonous snake, she’d be dead right now. She launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his throat. She heard a thud and then his arms were around her, surrounding her in a blanket of safety. For the first time, she thought maybe he really would keep his promise.

Stalk Riley Quinn at:

Website: http://www.riley-quinn.com/

Blog: http://rileyquinnauthor.blogspot.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Riley-Quinn/221823930058

Twitter: http://twitter.com/RileyQuinn