Today in author cage we have author Lisa M. Airey, author of Touching The Moon, one of our Book Blast novels today. We would like to thank Lisa for stopping by today and sharing with is. Here we go…
Welcome to Darkest Cravings, tell us a little bit about yourself?
I love to cook. In fact, I love to cook so much that I almost thought about making it a career. I’m a regular at my farmer’s market (even though I grow a lot of my own produce and herbs.) I’m a Maryland Master Gardener, make bread from a 167-year old sourdough starter, keep geese and rabbits and will get a handful of chickens this spring. Oh! And I have worms. (Well, not me personally!) I have 3,000 red wigglers in a worm condo making compost for my garden. My life is... organic!
When did you first consider yourself a “writer”?
I sort of grew into the role. My career was in wine sales. I landed a job writing a weekly wine column for a network of local papers back in 2005. For the next eight years, I cranked out an article a week. I felt pretty credible after such a long period of time in the trenches. About mid-way through that writing stint, I began working within the educational arm of the wine industry. My work involved research, fact-checking…and textbook writing. And then I wrote a novel. Everything gradually just… snowballed!
Writing adult fiction isn’t for everyone, how did you end up writing for the toughest audience?
Adult fiction is what I read. It is a genre with which I am most familiar. And, as they say, people gravitate to what they know!
Most of the intimidating parts of being an adult fiction writer are the steamy scenes, how did you overcome the “stage fright”?
Actually, I find the steamy scenes to be the most fun to write--especially when the lead characters make love for the first time. I am not graphic with the details, but the tension and the heat are there. Many of my readers have found the love scenes powerful and have told me that “less is more”. It’s a formula that I will keep.
Which fictional character would you like to go on a date with? Why?
I’ve always had a sweet spot for Superman/Clark Kent. There’s just something winning about a man with super-human powers upholding truth, justice and the American way. I know some women are very attracted to “trouble”; I like the good guys.
What was the first adult fiction novel that you read? What was your reaction?
I have been reading adult fiction since I was a child. Of course I read the classics. But what really impacted me was a novel called “The Source” by James A. Michener. The story revolved around an archeological dig in Israel. The chapters alternated between the past and the modern day. In one chapter, the archeologists would find an artifact, then, the next chapter would take you back in time and describe the significance and history of that object and how it came to rest where it was found. As a reader, I felt as if I were in two parallel universes at the same time. It was an incredible read.
Your favorite adult fiction book is-? I have five: The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough, Trinity by Leon Uris, The Source by James A. Michener, River God by Wilbur Smith and the Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Your favorite Author is-? I like J. Michael Orenduff for murder-mystery, Janet Evanovich for mad-cap adventure, Patricia Briggs and Charlaine Harris for Urban Fantasy, Laini Taylor and Jonathan Stroud for fantasy, Isabelle Allende for strong story-telling, Wilbur Smith for adventure…there are just so many!
We all have a treasured possession, what is yours?
I have a house full of things that I treasure but none as important as the people who fill my house. I’m not a collector of “things”. Most of my travel souvenirs are edible!
Are your characters based on real people or did you create them from scratch?
All the characters in “Touching the Moon” were created from scratch, however, I did name check my daughter’s flat-mate, Julie. I used her name for my main character. In the sequel, I name-check my daughter’s office-mate, Constanze. The characters are nothing like the real people, but as I have been inundated with “Julie” and “Constanze” in casual conversation, I’ve grown fond of those names and used them.
Do you think adult fiction have reached its full potential yet, or are we still in for a huge surprise?
There will always be big surprises. Who knew that Fifty Shades would have such wide-spread appeal?
Do you think adult fiction helps improves relationships?
That is a very serious question and I will answer it from a woman’s perspective.
I think adult fiction makes women aware of the holes in their lives and the needs that are unfulfilled.
Some readers use novels to bridge the gap between what they have and what they want. They are happy with living their emotional life vicariously. Others read adult fiction and use it as an impetus for change. It adult fiction enriches in either way, it’s a good thing.
If you have to pitch adult fiction to someone that’s too shy to read it, what would you pitch?
What happens between the covers (of a book); stays between the covers. If you’re worried about the bodice-ripping graphics of some, get a Kindle. No images. Just text. No one will ever know!
What is your motto?
I don’t have a motto. But there is a quote that has impacted me greatly: "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience." - Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Perhaps this is why I write paranormal. I think, in our core, we are all spiritual beings. The outer form is just a shell.
In “Touching the Moon” one of my male characters is big in size and mean in countenance… with a heart of gold. It takes the heroine a while to see the man for who he truly is. Luckily for the both of them, she “sees” with her heart.
We all should.
Now that is a great motto! If you would like to find out more about Lisa and her novel, check out the blast of Touching The Moon just below.
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