Welcome back to the Jungle a woman who needs no introduction! A fabulously talented (I’m jealous kind of talented!) romantic suspense author, a very good friend, and plotmonkey pal, ROXANNE ST. CLAIRE! If you haven’t read one of Rocki’s BULLET CATCHER books yet, I have one question. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?? Rocki has two Bullet Catchers out back to back, last month’s HUNT HER DOWN and this month’s MAKE HER PAY. I can tell you that I read HUNT HER DOWN on my Kindle then immediately purchased it in paper back so I could have it forever in my hands. It’s that good. Or should I say DAN is THAT GOOD? 
I have MAKE HER PAY in my hot little hands. Since Julie is at a conference, Carly has posted today’s blog and I’m not all that good with adding photos around text, so forgive me. Anyway, and now … we bring you ROCKI!
*****
Plotmonkey Questions:
Hello again to my favorite bloggers and friends. I am so delighted to be invited back for a Saturday visit to the Plotmonkeys! Thanks to all four of you for the invitation and constant support and friendship.
Julie suggested she throw some (ahem, softball) questions my way for today’s blog. Okay, these were not “How did you start writing?” and “Who inspires you?” These were tough. But I’ve taken them on and since this is “craft” Saturday, I hope I can teach you all a little something, or at least inspire. And if not, leave a comment anyway. I’m giving away Bullet Catcher books!
QUESTION: What is the single biggest mistake you’ve seen new authors make in the their quest for publication?
ANSWER: When first considering that question, I thought, ‘where do I start?’ It does seem like there are so many…and yet, there really are NO mistakes because everyone’s career path is their own. In truth, one writer’s misstep is another writer’s big break. But I can tell you some common mistakes that you might like to avoid:
From a craft standpoint, the most common mistake I see on contest entries is a subtle lack of emotion and voice, probably because the writer is “following the rules” and over-editing based on critiques. What you get is a bland, blah, forgettable manuscript that’s been stripped of the edge that makes it outstanding. My advice to new writers is to be aware of the rules and the reason they exist, but don’t write to them. Listen to contest judges and critique partners, but don’t let that input sway your story so much that the burn to write it is extinguished. Your voice is the one thing that makes you different from every other writer. Keep it loud!
From a business standpoint, the most common mistake I see is the writer who gets so wrapped up with all of the ins and outs of “the romance publishing industry” (knowing who’s who, bloghopping, namedropping, social networking) but never really writes anything. There are a lot of these people in RWA, and I doubt any of them will be published. Of course, it’s good to understand the business, but it is so much more important to write a killer manuscript, and then learn the business.
From a personal standpoint, I think the most egregious error a writer can make is to lose confidence in her writing. I have said this a thousand times to a hundred writers: persistence and tenacity are as important as talent in this business. You can persist through rejections and critiques IF you believe in yourself and your abilities right down to your last strand of DNA. This is not to say you should be smug, au contraire! Because smug writers get bad karma, and that is just a fact. Be confident, be resilient, be determined, but don’t be cocky. You just never know what can happen – good and bad.
QUESTION: Since hindsight is 20/20, what is something you wished you’d known in the beginning of your career.
ANSWER: If I knew then what I know now…I might have never put my butt in the chair and typed the two most dangerous words in the language: Chapter One. This is a difficult, heartless, grueling business and I really don’t think the vast (99%) of those who enter it have any idea what it takes to make a living as a working writer of genre fiction. I certainly didn’t! But while it is one of the most difficult jobs I’ve ever had (and I’ve had some challenging positions in the corporate world), writing for a living also offers the most personal satisfaction of anything I’ve ever done. In addition, I have more of a sense of belonging than I’ve ever had in any other field. I believe I’m doing what I was meant to do, and that helps me sit down and write “Chapter One” over and over again. (Hopefully on a new manuscript each time!)
QUESTION: Some authors love the revision process, others hate it – which side do you fall on?
ANSWER: I love revisions with a fervor that burns deep in my soul and keeps me alive. I hate fresh writing, hate blank pages, hate unwritten words, hate the beginning of every scene and chapter. Basically, I hate to write. I love to rewrite. I think two entirely different sides of our brains are engaged in the processes, and for me, the side that does the beautification projects is much stronger than the side that throws the stuff down and hopes for the best. I can rewrite a book from page one in less than three weeks. But the first draft is sheer hell for me. I will probably edit this document twelve times before I send it, then when I read today’s blog live, I’ll see twenty words I want to change. And that is why I don’t look at my books once they are published.
QUESTION: You’re known for writing scenes that maximize tension…no word is wasted. Do you have a technique for that or is it just the way you tell a story?
ANSWER: Thank you!! I think you can just slide right up to my revision answer for the real truth. My first draft ain’t pretty, that’s for sure. And I will say that I’ve written fourteen books for the same editor, the fabulous Micki Nuding at Pocket Books, and she has most certainly helped me eliminate wasted words. That woman wields a relentless pencil, and delete is her favorite editorial mark. Without a doubt, I’ve learned to anticipate what she’d cut, and take it out myself so that I don’t have to endure the shame of a pockmarked line edit. I do think every word has a job to do, an emotion to elicit. But all of that happens in the second draft, I assure you. And I’m still learning with every book, as we all are.
QUESTION: Can you give us an example of how you’ve turned publishing lemons into lemonade?
ANSWER: I think that’s the cue for me to talk about my new series and a huge change I’ve made recently in my career! Not that I would consider a change in publishers “lemons” but when I made the decision to do that this summer, it meant leaving behind, at least temporarily, a series that has finally reached some critical mass in popularity. So, that was difficult, but my solution was to create a “spin off” series that allows me to build a new world, but one that fits nicely into the kind of books I love to write: sexy romantic adventures.
When my new editor asked for a series with the same tone and style, but with a slightly different “angle” to it, I knew instantly that I wanted to add the element of family to my books. I come from a big family, and married into an Italian family (landing me the unforgettable name of Rocki Frisiello) and I really wanted to meld those fun, crazy, emotional family dynamics into a crimefighting group as fearless and memorable as the Bullet Catchers. And I think I have!
Next fall, Grand Central Publishing will launch my new series, called The Guardian Angelinos, about a extended family of rogue investigators and security specialists based in Boston. This team of rule breaking, risk taking, wave making siblings and cousins aren’t afraid to get into the face of criminals to protect the innocent, and they’ll fight with each other as easily as they’ll take down a baddie. They’ll also die for each other, and sometimes, it seems like they might have to. I’m just finishing the first book in the series now, and having a blast, as the characters are a little grittier and streetwise than anything I’ve ever written.
However, it is a spin-off (the Angelinos are distant relatives of Bullet Catcher Johnny Christiano), so there may be the occasional Bullet Catcher appearance…and, who knows? Maybe Lucy will decide to buy the little operation and make it her Boston office! (Stay tuned to www.roxannestclaire.com for more information on titles & release dates…and of course pictures of my hot heroes.)
In the meantime, my first back-to-back Bullet Catcher releases are out now, HUNT HER DOWN and MAKE HER PAY and to celebrate that, I’d like to give some away today! One commenter will win both books – or two Bullet Catcher backlist books of your choice! Go ahead, throw me a fast ball – I’ll answer anything today!
xoxo
Rocki
Carly Phillips would like to take 100% credit for all her stories but the truth is, Carly’s strength is writing family, emotion, funky elderly people and animals. She couldn’t plot her way out of a paper bag, which is why she smartly found her plotmonkey pals early on in her writing career. Thanks to their support, Carly is now a NYT Bestselling author of 23 plus novels. Because writing doesn’t keep her busy enough, Carly is also a wife, a mother of one preteen and one teenage daughter, the primary care giver of her soft coated Wheaten terrier and an expert carpool mom.
ANOTHER WILD WEDDING NIGHT
Hard to Hold
Love Me If You Dare
Wild For Him
Subscribe to Posts 
Comment
OH my GOD Rocki, YOU ARE MY SOUL SISTER!!!!! I LOVE REViSIONS TOO!
And I hate blank pages. Who knew?
Comment
Let’s hear it for revisions!
And thank you again, Carly & all the Plotmonkeys for inviting me over to play today. I really am chained to may computer today with a deadline looming, and the only think I like more than revisions is a good DISTRACTION, so please ask me lots of questions and I’ll chat all day long! And play with these dang irresistible little emos. 
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
lol…yeah, count me as one, too. I don’t love writing, I love having written.
And revising is definitely part of that love!
Comment
Rocki: I’m having a blast reading all your work. Last Saturday I met you (again) at the book signing in Altamonte Springs. I bought a copy of Killer Curves (I’m retro-reading your books). I’m glad you suggested it. Keep writing, girl. You inspire novice writers like me — no, you don’t inspire, you ROCK us wannebes.
Comment
Oh, sigh, Karen. I think I talked you into that book. I hope you love it!
Comment
Rocki, you are kidding, right? Of course I’ll love it. A good writer (like all the gals in plotmonkey and beyond) is a good writer. Early books to later books. It’s all good.
Comment
Hi Roxanne :)
Thank you for the excellent interview.
I learned a lot from your wise helpful answers.
Thanks for sharing.
All the best,
RKCharron
xoxo
Comment
Thanks, RK, for stopping by on a Saturday! Happy to help!
Comment
Hi Roxanne and Congrats on your releases !!
Very interesting interview.
I was wondering if, now that you’re an established author, with very good reviews (two RT 4.5 ina row, Wow !!), things have change in your perception of your writing. Are things easier ? Do the words just flow ?
I’m very curious ;-)
Comment
Emmanuelle – thanks for bringing up those two Top Picks. How would I have figured a way to work them in?
You’re the best.
Okay. Do books get easier after a while? No. Easier after positive reviews. NO! (The bar gets higher.) Do they get easier after several releases in one series? After winning a RITA? After hitting a list, getting a decent advance, or selling to multiple publishers, or….NO, NO and No.
The fact is every single book is harder to write than the one before. At least, that’s how it is for me. I don’t know why, except that with every story, I sit down hoping to make it The Very Best I’ve Ever Written, so the challenge gets more difficult every time. Also, after 24 releases (some novellas, some category, some single title), I am starting to worry about repeating storylines, archetypes, villains, and am really running out of creative ways to put a heroine’s life in danger.
I will tell you this, so you don’t turn off the computer and run down to Walmart to apply for a greeter job, never to put pen to paper again: while the books don’t get easier, my faith in my own ability to climb the mountain and reach The End grows with every book. So, I just don’t panic as much when I reach the inevitable brick wall of a plot. (Where, if you’re intrested, I spent this past week – just climbing over it yesterday, after six days of hell.) I used to almost throw up in the middle of the night when I would wake and realize what a mess of a manuscript I had. Now, I just take a deep breath, acknowledge the mess, and realize that I’ve done this 24 times, and each time it was a hairpull
and each time, the final product was a book I loved.
So, no, it doesn’t get easier. But it gets less daunting. Does that help?
Rocki
Comment
Thank you Roxanne for answering me !!
It’s so very interesting, really.
Thanks A LOT for sharing with us ;-)
Comment
Welcome back Rocki! I love your Bullet Catcher books(thanks to the Plotmonkeys for introducing me to your books) and your new series sounds wonderful! Heading over to your website so I can find out more about release dates and hot heroes now.
Comment
Thanks, Liza! So glad our mutual friends could introduce us. The two latest Bullet Catchers (Dan Gallagher
and Con Xenakis) are out now and there are excerpts and pictures and all sorts of fun stuff on the site. Nothing new about The Guardian Angelinos yet…I’m still researching photos of those guys. Now that is some grueling work, I tell ya. 
Thanks for stopping by and giving the Bullet Catchers a chance!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Roxanne,
Are there any scenes that you find hard to write e.g. love scenes, action, etc. Why do you think that is?
Thanks.
Comment
Hello Llehn – Great question! Some writers have been bouncing this around on twitter last week – I asked which was harder heart-wrenching emotion or high-action? The answers were split, but for me, a highly emotional scene (like a post-coital confession or an “almost” love scene where emotions stop the actual act) is always the most difficult for me. I feel like those are the soul of the book, and I want them to do everything: make the reader fall in love, unpeel character layers, deepen the conflict, squeeze out a few tears. The scenes of high action, danger, near death usually fly off my fingers — and then require a huge rewrite because I used the words “propelled” and “barrelled” and “whipped” nineteen times in the same scene
But, all scenes are difficult at first. I really hate writing the opening of a scene. If anyone knows any tricks to get me past the first three paragraphs, let me know. I usually just write *anything* to get started, most often introspection to set up the scene, and then delete it all and turn it into dialogue and action as I get deeper. Any other good tricks are welcome!
Thanks for stopping by!
Rocki
Comment
Good morning, Rocki, amazing friend and author. We’ve known each other a long time. Great blog and I look forward to your next series from Grand Central. I’ve loved your Bullet Catchers, but I have to say, one of my all-time favorite’s of your books was (NASCAR) Killer Curves. And Hit Reply was awesome (chick lit with all email exchanges). Have a fun day on Plotmonkeys! No need to enter me in the giveaway.
Comment
My dearest Kate!! I
you right back. Thank you so much for stopping by and for giving a little pimpage to two of my very favorite books, KILLER CURVES and HIT REPLY. I loved writing those books. Recently, someone won two books from the Bullet Catchers backlist on a blog like this, and she wrote to me and said she had them all, but would be happy to take new copies, but requested that I send her my “two favorite books” no matter what they were, even from my small category collection. I sent her KILLER CURVES and HIT REPLY, even though they are “old” (out in 2004, 2005 – and written years before that!), they are dear to my heart.
So many writers say they don’t have a favorite book, that would be like having a favorite child. (Well, some days, I *definitely* have a favorite child
– the four legged one.) But I always cite three books when asked that, and not one is a Bullet Catcher: those two (KC and HR) and my last Silhouette Desire, HIS STYLE OF SEDUCTION.
Thanks for stopping by, Kate. You are da bomb, baby.
Comment
Great interview. I look forward to reading your new books. Have you ever considered writing another genre ?
Comment
Hey Linda – I answered your question with Maureen’s below! Thank you!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Roxanne,
Congratulations on the new series. I’m wondering if you ever see yourself writing something other than romantic suspense?
Comment
Thank you Linda & Maureen – great to see you here. I’ve combined a reply into one, since you’ve both asked essentially the same question. And the answer is YES. I have written straight contemporary romance for Harlequin/Silhouette, and I’ve written chick lit for Downtown Press. I absolutely want to write in another genre and am thinking about both YA and women’s fiction, as well as contemporary romance. I seriously doubt I’d be any good in paranormal (although I sure wish I had a vampire in me, if you know what I mean), but it’s just not my thang.
I read a lot of YA and have a tween (12) and teenager (16), so that feels like a natural second home for me. I also love some really meaty women’s journey stories, but there would have to be a huge element of romance in the story for me to be happy.
Thanks to both of you for stopping by!
Rocki
Comment
Great interview!
Comment
Rocki, I am looking forward to your new series it sounds great sort of like the Lauren Dane series…maybe? I have read all of your books but the 2 new ones…. too little time my they will be in my tbr pile as soon as I can get my hands on them…. keep writing I love your books….
Donna
Comment
I’m mortified to say I’ve never read Lauren Dane, and am not familiar with her series. *off to check amazon* Thank you so much for stopping by, now get to that toppling TBR pile, stat!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Rocki,
I too found your books because of the Plotmonkeys. I love the Bullet Catchers
and then did my best to find every other book you have written. I have read hunt her down and loved it and now am reading Make her Pay. You were one of the 2 books I picked up on my way to camp on Monday. I had a big list and was so glad you were one of the two I could get at nasty old not stocking many of my favorites anymore Walmart. I would have spent this rainy day curled up with Make Her Pay but I have company coming and have cooking to do. It was hard to put down and sits nestled in my cozy chair waiting for the company to go home. I hope you do manage to entwine the bullet catchers. I would miss them. The new series, Guardian Angelinos sounds wonderful and your heros are always delicious. I just read the first chapter wtih Solange, yikes. Have a great day and thanks for the bookmark! jeannie
Comment
Hey Jeannie – Cooking for company on a rainy day ain’t a bad way to spend a Saturday at all. And when the work is over and the friends are gone, you can curl up with Lizzie and Con! Enjoy and THANK YOU for being such a loyal reader and fan!
Rocki
PS. Solange Bettencourt was a really fun character to write. First the name Solange just popped into my head (after I researched common last names in the Azores) and came with such a powerful mental image. I had something else in mind for her when I wrote that first scene up in the windmill, and then, wham, she did what she did. And I just stared at the screen and thought, oh, yeah. She’s gonna be fun to write!
Comment
G’morning, Rocki! People, the Bullet Catchers rock big time! So does Rocki.
I think I am Rocki’s right brain. I LOVE the empty page. Once I have the story in mind, I can usually just rip through it. My problem comes from multiple POVs (because they’re all important LOL!) and probably a bit too much description, and uhm…backstory. I want to keep it all and HATE revising!
Which leads to my question…how much backstory do you have for your characters before you start writing, and how do you decide how much of it to use (and where!) in the book itself? Thanks for dropping by today and I hope to be all the way through the Bullet Catcher series before the Angelinos start! I can’t wait!!!
Comment
Face it, Sil, you are my other half, separated at birth!
I do believe people are predisposed to one or the other (fresh v. revisions), probably like some us like math and some like language. Seriously, people LIKE math! 
But, to your question on backstory of characters. Oh, this is my weakness, my downfall, my problem spot on every manuscript. I *think* I know my characters, I certainly want to know them, I have an idea of who they are, I can visualize them….oh, I’m lying through my fingertips now. I don’t know a thing about them!
I just have a vague, gray, blurry, inaccurate sense of who they are going to be when I start a story, because my books begin with a premise more than a character, and then I build characters who would fit in that world and have a tremendous amount of conflict. Unless I’m starting with a specific member of the team in mind, as I did, for instance with Dan’s book, HUNT HER DOWN. But I certainly didn’t know too much about Maggie until I started to write her.
Sometimes, they reveal themselves quickly, and this process is not too difficult. Sometimes, it takes half the book (or more!!!) until I finally understand their backstory and motivations, and then I either have to rewrite or congratulate myself on getting it correct. Usually I have to “layer in” their backstory/conflict/character. Hey, I never said it was a pretty process.
Every once in a while, a character or two comes to me fully formed. These folks are so rare, I can tell you who they are (Lucy Sharpe, Vanessa Porter, Stevie & Amber in HIT REPLY, Jack Locke, to name a few) but for the most part, it’s a process of having a giant slab of marble that needs to be chiseled until I find the person inside.
Thanks for being here, Silver!
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Rocki, have I mentioned that I love you? Like a sister! Not like stalker-ish or anything!
And you just had to mention MATH! 
Learning about everyone’s process is so interesting. I usually know my characters intimately (No! Not like that. Get your mind out of there!), which is why it’s so hard NOT to write their backstories. As I get to know them, their stories eventually come out and then I can sit and tell it on paper. I’m nowhere near as prolific as Alannah, except during November, when I participate in National Novel Writing Month.
It’s always a blast to visit with you.
XOXOXO
-Sil
Comment
Rocki, thanks so much for being here!!!! We love having you come to visit…wish it were on my back porch with a pitcher of pina coladas, but I’ll take what I can get.
Comment
Leslie, my love!!! Yes to the many hours of pina coladas (and margaritas and wine and other concoctions we’ve shared) on your back patio!
I miss you so much!
I’m hearing so much amazing buzz on the Black Cats books – there better be more! And come back to Florida, girl!
xoxo
Rock
Comment
I would like to know if the author gets to see the absolute final edit before it goes to printing? I recently read a short read and I found at least 5 typos. I was just wondering who is responsible – the publisher or the author. (personally I am blaming the publisher thinking that’s one of the things you are paying them for) Thanks. And your books sound wonderful :)
Comment
Hi Catslady – what a great question. Boy, would we writers like to clear this up once and for all. A lot of people have their hands on a manuscript and, ideally, the author is among the last — but not necessarily so. We have several chances during the production process to see the manuscript and fix typos, but we don’t always have the FINAL review. So, I may make 15 typo fixes to a galley, also known as “first pass pages” and send them in to my publisher, but at the very same time, without seeing my fixes, a proofreader is doing the same thing. In a perfect world, we would both find the same typos, but that doesn’t necessarily happen. But that’s not the last step – a production person INPUTS the changes by hand. She may make a mistake, she may miss a fix, she may (and this happens) decide that it wasn’t really a typo and she’s going to ignore the fix.
In any case, we rarely get to see “second pass pages” although, if a manuscript has been heavily edited in line and copy edit stages, some editors will allow us to look at them. (There can be as many as fifth pass pages, and not all of us ever get to see them.) But if we don’t, we have no way of correcting those errors that were made, even if we THOUGHT we corrected them.
A typo in a book hurts more than words can say. When I find one… :*&#!: And when I find one that I already corrected and the fix didn’t get made?
Please don’t blame the author, but if it’s something that really wrecks the story for you, let us know, because we can sometimes arrange to have it fixed in second printings.
Thank you for the GREAT question!!!
Rocki
Comment
Hi, Rocki! I have a couple of your books on the TBR, but haven’t had a chance to get started yet
I do often like to have the complete series before starting–are you continuing to write the Bullet Catchers? Or will you be focusing mainly on the Guardian Angelinos for now? :) I’ll also definitely be looking for Killer Curves and Hit Reply! Thanks for hanging out with the Plotmonkeys today!
Comment
Hi Fedora – thanks for stopping by. I will admit that I went kicking and screaming into a “series” because as a reader, I’ve never been a fan. I don’t like that feeling that “I’ve missed something” so when I’d pick up a book with recurring characters and someone refers to something that happened in the past, I’m just all bent out of shape wondering if that was a book I should have read first.
So, I avoided series as a reader and a writer.
But, alas, they are popular! And when I hit upon the idea for the Bullet Catchers, I knew I had a series that, by nature of what they do (security specialists, bodyguards, investigators) every book could have its own “suspense and romance” and with recurring characters but you wouldn’t have to read their book to appreciate their role in the series. Does that make sense?
You do not have to read the Bullet Catchers in any order or even start with the first one. There are three in the middle (a trilogy called FIRST YOU RUN, THEN YOU HIDE and NOW YOU DIE) that are all connected to the same 30 year old murder mystery that is solved in that third book, but each one is a stand alone story. Best if read in order, but not a problem if you’ve missed one. That’s probably the best way to describe my series.
Read them all! I promise a rollicking good time!
I’m certainly focusing on the Angelinos for now, as I have three books due in very quick succession. Then, we’ll see. It’s all up to the publishing gods! I would love to revisit the Bullet Catchers again, since they are like a close family to me.
Thanks for the great question!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Rocki, welcome back to the Jungle
Great interview. Your comments about believing in yourself and your writing abilities hit home for me. Writing is such a solitary business and it’s hard to know when or if our work will make the grade on an editor’s desk. We simply have to write the best book we know how and hope for the best. But I must confess there are times when I read a really fabulous book and the whole time I’m thinking…Could I ever write a book with characters and a plot this great? Then doubt gives my a light punch in the gut.
To combat those feelings of doubt I have Use The Gift taped to my computer screen. It’s something a friend told me. It helps but still the doubts sometimes creep in but I’ve become very good lately at squashing them into a little greasy spot on the ground. Because I know deep down in my bones that if writers don’t believe in themselves and their work no one else will either. We have to in order to survive this brutal, soul-crushing business. Of all the jobs I’ve had this is by far the hardest–and the most fun.
And I LOVE revisions too! Once the story is on the page that’s when the fun begins.
Thanks for being here.
Cher
Comment
Well said, Cher!!
Bravo to you for “Use The Gift.” I love that. My above the computer quote is from Queen of Commercial Fiction, Judith Krantz: “It isn’t easy to write a book that’s easy to read.”
Soul-crushing indeed, but also soul-nourishing…at certain times. All you can do is try to find the fun, even during the moments when it feels like anything but.
Great comments & thank you!
Comment
You’re right it does nourish the soul for sure! I love the quote from Judith Krantz. And it’s so true!
Cher
Comment
That is such a cute picture, Rocki….I can’t remember which book it was that I enjoyed, but I remember I emailed you….anyway…I am not a writer, so keep up the good work :)
Comment
Thanks, Katie! And thanks for writing to me in the past. There really is nothing that keeps us going like a letter from a reader. I read every one and write back within 24 hours, if at all possible. Even the not so wonderful ones!
I answer everyone. So keep writing to writers! We live for it! 
Comment
Thanks for a great post, Rocki. And the Q&A is just as interesting.
Comment
Thanks, Jeanne and thank you so much for stopping by! It’s a great day in the Jungle.
Comment
Hi Rocki!! Welcome back to the jungle and thanks for so much great advice (in the body of the blog and in your comments). I love the Bulletcatchers series. Dan was always one of my favs so I was glad to read his story last month. *Makes note to get Con’s story because he sounded super-hot*
I’m like Silver. I love the first draft soooo much more than revising. In the last week and a half (9 days) I wrote 43,779 words. I took 2 days off because of family commitments and then got into edits on a story that had been “sitting.” In the past 2 days I’ve managed to edit 4 pages! :*&#!: 4!!! 5 if you consider I’ve added an extra page during the revision process. This is such a painful process for me!
On average, how long does it take you to write a story from start to finish (when you send it off to the editor)?
Thanks again for taking the time to be here with us and answer so many great questions!!
Comment
FORTY THREE THOUSAND WORDS IN NINE DAYS? DID IT READ THAT RIGHT???
I don’t think my fingers are capable of the pain and effort it takes to type 43,000 words in nine days. That’s like four weeks of work for me – four amazing, I’m-totally-on-top-of-my-game weeks. Stunning.
It takes me about three months to get the story down, give or take a few weeks. Then I have to have about two weeks to do my own revisions, fill in holes, layer charcter stuff, finish loose end research and polish. Then I send it in to my editor and revisions can take anywhere from five minutes to three weeks, depending on how much she wants. During those revisions, I’m usually fresh writing another book.
If I write 10,000 words in a week, I think I’m the Queen Of The World and I live here
But most weeks, it’s less than that, with many long days of nothing while I think and plot. Usually two or three times in the drafting, I stop and go back to page one and do a revision, most often when I have a character or plot breakthrough that is going to affect many previously written scenes.
In a perfect world, I get four months to write a book, but the world…she ain’t perfect.
Thanks for your question and OMG
for your productivity.
Rocki
PS. When revising, I usually do between 25 – 75 pages per day, depending on how much is a new, how much is polish.
Comment
Thanks for the reply!!
Comment
Hi Roxanne,
Congratulations on your back to back releases!
I enjoyed your interview!
Comment
Thanks, Chey! I’m having a little too much fun here and not writing AT ALL.
Comment
Hi Roxanne! Great blog. Thanks for sharing. I have to admit I sit in the camp of not actually liking the revision process – shock horror – I’m a “panster” rather than a plotter and like to type Chapter One and then see where the story goes!! But saying that any revisions suggested ALWAYS make the book better! Are you a “panster” or a “plotter”? Take care. Caroline x
Comment
I’m both, Caroline. I used to be a plotter – even did workshops on how to plot braid using a plotting board, and it all sounded so amazing. Until I realized that I was really a pantzer because I wasn’t following that board at all.
I’m pantz with a view of about 5 scenes ahead. That’s the best I can tell you. I use a yellow legal pad to outline my plot points and create what I call a “story plan” (not really a plot -but it tells me WHAT is going to happen, not HOW) and I try to follow it. If I know what the next five scenes are, I’m really happy, and I write to that plan. Usually (God willing), when I get to the fifth scene (which will probably be completely different from what I thought it would be), about five more scenes start to form in my head. And I take it from there.
Ugly, that’s my process. A combo or plotting and pantzing. I’m a plantzer.
Rocki
Comment
Thanks Roxanne! Take care. Caroline
Comment
Hi Roxanne,
I have read a couple of your books and loved them, but then again I love reading suspense! I was wondering what type of books do you read? Do your read suspense yourself or are you more a historical or paranormal type of girl?
Comment
Hi Quilt Lady – thank you! So glad you like the books!
When I read, I just want to forget I’m a writer. I read very little suspense, because I can’t take my writer hat off and just get into it, I’m always second guessing. (Although I loved Leslie’s Black Cat series – she totally had me.) I read a lot of straight contemp romance (LUCKY BREAK is at the top of my pile!) and I only read some paranormal, as it isn’t my favorite. Of course I loved Julie’s PHANTOM series, and I read a lot of Kresley Cole’s books because she is my buddy and every word she writes is glorious. I recently finished a Kristin Higgans I just loved (TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE) and Louisa Edward’s culinary romance CAN’T STAND THE HEAT.
Mostly, I read massive amounts of YA. I don’t know why it appeals to me so much, but it does. Maybe I think like a teenager, or maybe because I have them, the YA books help me to understand their world better. I just love YA so very much. I love YA movies, too. I guess it’s the innocence and the thrill of first love.
Thanks for asking!
Rocki
Comment
Welcome back Rocki!
Congrats on your back to back releases! Very interesting interview and I love the pics! I love the Bullet Catcher series and the new books sound awesome!
I was wondering how much research you do for a book and how far would you go?
Thanks!
Comment
Hi Terri! It’s great to be back! I do a ton of research, usually on going while I write the book. My major areas of research are setting & character’s profession, but on any given day, I might be researching how to make a gas furnace explode (am doing that right now, as a matter of fact) or how to use face spackle to change a scar…you name it, I’ve researched it. If the FBI ever looks at my internet travels, I’m doomed.
The thing I love about research is this: it is the number one source of plot and character ideas. When I research, I get ideas, every single time. So, I love to do dig into a subject or a setting, especially early in the book when the story is not yet formed. Invariably, I’ll read something that makes a lightbulb go off, plotwise.
I also get four newspapers a day delivered to my door and they are chock full of story ideas and research. I am a newspaper junkie!
Great to see you here!
Rocki
Comment
It’s funny that you mention the FBI searching your internet travels, because just this past week as I was searching through the FBI and ATF websites I wondered if they track people who spend a lot of time on their sites. Do they? Does anyone know?
Comment
I don’t know anything about face spackle on the KOD loop. I am ashamed to admit that when on deadline (as I am now), I rarely open any loop digests except PASIC and my home chapters.
Now I’ll have to go digging for that note because I do have face spackle in this book – a hit man who is a master of disguises (not the hero!).
The universe is a strange place sometimes.
Comment
That is crazy!! I think the question was posted yesterday or the day before. The author was asking for a way to disguise scars and someone told her about face spackling. Too funny! Well, scratch my earlier comment. I guess there can be two researching the same thing at the same time. LOL
Comment
Hi Rocki!
Thanks so much for answering my question, I greatly appreciate it!
In search of “Tropical Getaway”.
Comment
Oh, good luck with that. TROPICAL GETAWAY is out of print for a long time now. (It was my first book.) I only have three copies, and I can’t part with them because I want to save two of every book I’ve ever written for my children. Maybe Pocket will reissue it some day?
Thanks!
Rocki
Comment
Wonderful Q&A Roxanne! I was wondering what made you decide to start your first book? How did it come to life? Thanks for spending Saturday with us!!!
Comment
Hi Colleen – GREAT question. Of course, I’m a lifelong reader, like every writer, and always fantasized about writing a book. I did plenty of fan fic in elementary school (Here Come the Brides, anyone? Jeremy Bolt so wanted me.) and I wrote short stories until I was in my twenties. Then I got busy with work and life, and rarely wrote anything, but continued to read and joke about how I had a romance novel in me but I was stuck writing strategic communications plans for IBM and Burger King. Honestly.
One night in 1999, I read a really amazing book, closed it and decided that I wanted to make other women feel the same rush I felt at that moment. If I didn’t try, I never would. (I also should note that in this same timeframe, one of my brothers, an uber successful attorney in LA wrote a book and sold it to Bantam and it was published in hard cover. That opened my eyes to something I’d never realized: mere mortals can write and publish books. His book is DEADSPIN written in his pen name, Gregory Michael MacGregor. He’s never written another, by the way, but keeps threatening.)
Anyway, I decided to give it a try. I wrote my first manuscript without the benefit of RWA (didn’t even know it existed) at night, while my kids were sleeping. About half way through, I suspected I had found My Happy Place and no matter what happened, this was what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I knew it would be tough (but, no, I didn’t know HOW tough) but I was determined to finish it and sell it.
I did finish it, but that book never sold. However, it helped me get my first agent, and her advice was: Write another book. She knew that was my “learner book” and that I had a better one in me. She was right and I sold in January 2002, and my first book came out from Pocket in 2003…and my 24th book came out last week!
Thanks for asking!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Roxanne
Welcome I loved reading the blog. I’ve started writing and though I have lots of thoughts and storie ideas. I seem to struggle with the mechanics maybe I’m too focused on it, and it seems almost like things I should know but I’m like when should I start a new chapter, how long should a chapter be, should I be using a certain program just little things like that come up. Getting my thoughts organized and down.
Comment
Hi Michele and welcome to the wacky world of writing
You’ll never be the same! I’m sure you’ll get lots of opinions on this, but I think the only things you need to write a book is your imagination, time, and discipline. Let’s say you have those three already. I don’t recommend spending time or money on “writer’s software” which I think is a waste — especially if you’re just getting started. What you need to concentrate on now is not the mechanics, but the story. End chapters where they “feel” they should end. If you’ve been reading your whole life, you’ve picked up 90% of what you need to know through reading osmosis. You’d be surprised how much reading teaches you about writing.
Once you get fairly deep into your story, you might consider joining a critique group of other like-minded writers. If they know you’re just starting out, they might be able to help you with some of the very simple mechanics of laying out a manuscript, in addition to helping you with the craft. Of course, there’s a TON of information available in print and on line, but, again, I counsel you against spending enormous sums of time learning how to write a book. Instead, spend enormous sums of time WRITING a draft, and getting your stories, emotions, and characters on the page. There’s plenty of time for beautification, and plenty of ways to learn how to do it.
I hope that helps and GOOD LUCK!!!
The first manuscript is truly the most fun – enjoy it!
Rocki
Comment
Thanks for the tips they help me a lot I don’t have to worry so much about that other stuff and just write. I have joined RWA and just recentley the Tampa chapter so I’m off to a good start I think. Thanks
Comment
Oh, well, you are in a GREAT chapter! TARA ROCKS!
If you’re going to be at the November retreat, find me, and we’ll talk. And welcome to TARA – one of the BEST chapters in the country. (Also wonderful – TARA “East” – aka STAR, another great chapter in Florida!)
Rocki
Comment
Hi Roxie!
Dang, wish I had a question to pose you, but everyone else seemed to have covered all that I would have asked. I’ve read most, except for the newest one, which I will beg shamelessly with the hubs next Friday for me to get. Gotta have my Bulletcatcher fix but that doesn’t stop me from suggesting your books to at least three of my friends!
Comment
Hey Raonaid!
You are such a good reader and fan, and I know you love those Bullet Catchers! Shameless begging never fails – hope you get the book and love it!
Great to see you here!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Rocki!
Great interview and thanks for the chance to bombard you with all kinds of fun questions!!!
First what advice do you have for writers who have finished manuscripts and who are working on sending out a synopsis or query letters to agents and editors? Do you have any experiences of your own that you can share about the process that you’ve been through??
And, most important, what are you reading right now? (or what book to you plan want to read next?)
Thanks,
Kellie
Comment
Hi Kellie – I love to be bombarded! I have 35 pages left to write on a book and I’m seeking distractions. Here’s my advice for while you are in your submitting to agents mode:
1. Keep Five (or however many you can stand) ALIVE at all times. The day, the very day a rejection comes in, dry your tears and do not head directly to the fridge for wine or the pantry for chocolate or the knife block for an implement to cut your wrists. Go to your workspace, get out your research file full of agents, put together a submission (don’t let the tear stains show) and get it in the mail….and then head to the kitchen and do whatever it is you need to do.
2. While you are waiting for The Call: WRITE ANOTHER MANUSCRIPT.
You will be so happy you did when this one sells and they ask, “What else do you have?” Make it a multi-book deal, darling!
Good luck!!!
Rocki
Comment
Wow, GREAT conversation going on over here, ladies! No big surprise, with Rocki in the jungle…
My question is: What is your favorite way to refresh and renew yourself when the stress of writing gets you down?
Comment
Louisa! So great to see you here! On break from the wine tours? Nah, I’m not jealous.
My favorite way to refresh and renew. Well, I like to clean, and a good load of laundry clears my head, and there’s just nothing like wrapping my arms around the annual science project.
Obviously, I kid. I go to conferences! And I’m not just saying that because you are my Roommate Of Choice. I really find that getting around other writers, soaking up the atmosphere, learning some new tricks, and just having a time with my sisters at the well is the most rejuvinating thing I can do.
Thanks for stopping by on your way to the French Laundry. (Not the kind I’m doing today, by the way.)
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Hi! I am a big fan of the Bullet Catchers! I was just wondering what book of yours is your favorite? And who is your favorite hero and heroine (together as a couple or separately)? Awesome interview, look forward to reading more of your books!
Comment
Hi Erin! So great to see you here and thank you! I mentioned some of my favorite non-BC books upthread (HIT REPLY and KILLER CURVES) but I am often asked which of the Bullet Catcher series is my favorite.
Hmmm.
Probably…HUNT HER DOWN because I loved that Dan was finally finding true love. I also loved writing THEN YOU HIDE because it was pure fun to write that heroine. But, no, I’m going to go with NOW YOU DIE because I really adore Lucy Sharpe and I loved the power play between them. Oh, hell, I love them ALL! And I miss them! 
Thanks for writing!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Rocki!
Great post! I just wanted to stop by and say thank you for going to the effort of sending me a copy of Make Her Pay, along with the rest of the Bullet Catchers’ series over here in Iraq. I’ve had the luxury of reading the series back to back and each book gets better than the last. I’ve just started Con’s story and I’m loving it!!
I really relate to your piece about beginning writer mistakes. I’ve pretty much made them all but have had some fabulous mentors to pull me aside and help me through the worst of them. It’s challenging not giving up but having just recently pulled out of a serious case of writer’s block I wanted to ask you, have you ever been literally unable to write? How did you pull out of it?
Take care
Comment
You know sending you books and chocolate is my patriotic duty and my bone-deep pleasure.
Thank you, Jessica, for taking the time to stop by here today.
Have I ever been unable to write. Oh, yeah. After my mother died, I was 30 pages into a book on October 30 and it was due Jan 1. I just couldn’t write a word. My editor, of course, gave me an extension and told me just to take my time. But when Jan 1 rolled around and I still hadn’t written, I knew I couldn’t take any more time. Then some magic happened. It coincided with an uber-health kick that had me exercising and eating very smart every day, and, of course, the panic that comes with knowing you’ve been paid a tidy sum and the work is DUE IN NEW YORK. That was Lucy’s book, NOW YOU DIE, and I wrote like the wind, turning it in March to rave reviews from my editor. She had no revisions!
I think sometimes you HAVE to stop. If life is pressing you down, you have to take a week or a month and stop.
I have never had “writer’s block” but I do get “story block” all the time.
That just means I’ve done something wrong and have to go back and find it, then fix the book from that point forward. I think lots of people confuse writers block with story block.
Hope that helps, my dear friend!
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Hi roxanne~
Great interview! thanks for taking the time to share with us. I have just gotten back into reading this year after many years of lacking so i have a HUGE list of TBR, and it is growing bigger everyday !
The question i have (if i can get my wording right) is how do you come up with the fill (probably wrong wording) for your books. i get you have main characters, you have your main story line, you have certain scenes you know are going to take place. But there are just so may things that happen in books besides the main. i was just curious how you come up with them.Hope this made sense .
Thanks,
Jodie
Comment
Hi Jodie – Great question and welcome back to reading!
I know exactly what you mean by ‘fill’ although I don’t think of it that way. They are PLOT POINTS and each one should further the overall arc of your story. Every scene you write should have a purpose, a meaning, a reason for being there. (And just to show how hot the hero is does not qualify as a plot point, ladies. 
)
The plot points deepen characters, increase the conflict, raise the stakes, and propel the story. That’s what all the “fill” is – things that need to happen to complicate and enrich the whole story. If you have a great conflict – a truly deep, difficult conflict and it holds true for both the hero and heroine AND you have clear goals for them that they are willing to risk to achieve, you will not have “fill” – you will have scenes that catapult the reader from the beginning of the journey to a wild, climactic end (with awesome twists along the way).
I believe that the better the conflict (internal and external) and the more important the goals, the easier it is to build the story from page one to the end.
Does that help? Try reading books to identify the conflict, and they you’ll start to see how all that other stuff is just making it worse or more complicated.
Good luck!
Rocki
Comment
Thank you so much, you understood my question perfectly !
sometimes i’ve seen authors just put random things in their storys and after reading the part i sit back and think, wow what did that have to do with the story, what was the purpose of it. so i was always curious how authors come up with what they write.
Thank you so much for your answer,
JoJo
Comment
Comment
Hi Nicole! I have no idea if I have a winner on my hands. I thought HUNT HER DOWN was full of flaws, and the reviews have been amazing. I thought HIT REPLY was the next best thing to heaven, and about 15 people read it. There’s no way to know.
But celebrate, I do! When I type “the end” (and you’re not supposed to put that on a manuscript, btw, but I do, at least for the emotional and spiritual jolt of happiness it gives me – and I make one of my kids come in my office and “witness” it like a notary!) I am ready to REEEELAX and dive into my “personal revisions.” I’m about to do that with a book next week, and I CANNOT WAIT! After I send it to NY, I just basically chew my nails down to the second knuckle waiting for a reply that says something like “I loved it!” And when that email/phone call comes in, now that, my friends, is a HAPPY DAY.
Rocki
Comment
Comment
Hi Roxanne! Welcome back to the jungle. I really enjoyed your blog interview. I took notes. It was very informative, and very timely for a “new” writer such as myself. I can’t say which I hate the most yet because I haven’t gotten to the point where I have to revise anything in great length as yet. I must note that the blank page paralyzes me, and I get so freaked out when I don’t seem to have anything in me ready come out on the page. I have started a couple of things, but the doubt just takes over. I am in the middle of that right now. I know that eventually, I will get over it, but I just wish it didn’t scare me so.
My beloved plotmonkeys introduced you to me as well. I have some of the BC books, but I don’t have the first three. I want to get those before I start the series. I understand that they don’t need to be read in any particular order, but I truly prefer to go in order. I have read some of your contemps, which I loved as well. I love your voice.
My question for you: Have you ever felt paralyzed by the blank page to the point where you felt like you couldn’t write your story? I have been reading yoru responses to some of the questions above, and they show great insight into the type of person you are. Thanks again for swinging with us in the jungle again. I will check in again later.
Peace and love,
Paula R.
Comment
Oh, Paula, don’t wait for the whole series. Just sit down and read!
Any one of those books is going to take you on a fun, romantic adventure, and you really don’t have to read them in order. Even if you are OCD! 
Okay…your question. Have I ever really just been stopped…like I said above, I don’t think I get blocked as a writer, but I get blocked in a story. It happened this week, as a matter of fact. I’ve been cruising along on this book, just a few glitches here and there, and then wham! I’m on the same scene for two, three, five, seven days. This is a sign that Something Is Wrong.
I had to dig and dig, and I finally figured out what it was (heroine was behaving TSTL, hero was hapless, I’d painted myself into a corner for the sake of the next two books in the planned trilogy) so I came up with a solution I loved. Problem? This is NOT what my editor (my brand new editor at a brand new house where I am untested and unknown) is expecting. So, I emailed her, we had a call, and all is well. She agreed with my solution, and everything worked out. I’m 30 pages from The End.
If you don’t have an editor, then you have the next best thing. You have your GUT INSTINCT as a reader. Rely on it. Are you blocked because the story isn’t working? Dig deep. Think outside of the obvious solutions, or the plot you THOUGHT you were going to write. Ask yourself “what if this happens” and “what if THIS happens” — what happens to your story? You might not be blocked, but your story is.
Hope that helps, darlin’! Now go up to your TBR and
I wrote.
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
I get it…read the book you wrote…I have four of them sitting here. I will try not to be OCD when it comes to reading series or books that connect. Only the monkeys and three other authors out there in the world, that can get me to do that. However, you have been swinging on the vines with us a while now, definitely before I showed, and Silver loves you too, so I will take your advice…I will READ the books I have.
Thank you very much for the advice on blockage. I am wasn’t sure if the story is blocked or not. I am a complete newbie when it comes to writing books, books, rather than poetry, that it scares me stiff. I think that is playing a big part in my inability to put story to page. I wrote the questions down you stated as a reminder for myself as I continue on this journey. I really got some great info from today’s lesson…
Peace and love,
Paula R.
Comment
Hi Roxanne, really enjoying the questions and answers, it’s great getting to know you. I just started reading the series and have First You Run, staring at me right now yelling it’s time to read!! Had a question about your covers, do you have any input?
Comment
I have the feeling today that my books are the Tipping Point of a lot of TBR piles. Now, everybody, just put down what you’re doing and go read Rocki’s book! It won’t hurt, I promise. Don’t make come out there and force you.
Question about covers. I have some input, sure. I send pictures and ideas and other covers and color concepts and then…I get something from so far past left field, it’s in another time zone. My trilogy covers (FIRST YOU RUN, which you have, THEN YOU HIDE and NOW YOU DIE) are fondly referred to in my family as the “roads to nowhere.” They are “big book” covers…whatever that means.
The last two, with HAWT MAN FLESH – I completely love. What I wanted from Day One with the Bullet Catchers, but didn’t get.
Ignore the Road To Nowhere, and go read FIRST YOU RUN. Hot Aussie Hero Dead Ahead.
Rocki
Comment
Hey, Rocki! It’s always a pleasure having you in the jungle.
Great Q&A’s, too!
I absolutely loved HUNT HER DOWN, and this week bought MAKE HER PAY! I love the bullet catcher series!!!
Comment
Janelle – You are a doll!
Thank you and fifteen air kisses to you for having me here again! 
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Put me in the Loves Revisions, Hates Fresh Writing camp too! And now this:
just because I can. 
Comment
Hi Roxanne, great to ’see’ you again! I really enjoyed your post today. Please do not take this in the wrong way. But am glad I am not the only one that has ever felt sick when you think you have totally screwed up your plot. I feel normal, if that makes sense?! Thanks for being so honest.
I do have a couple of questions for you. Where would the inner conflict fit in my plot threads…main conflict, relationship, or secondary plot thread? OR what?
And my second question is about plotting. I am banging my head
trying to plot out my novel (yay…I’m a newbie)and I would love to know how you go about plotting your work. Please explain this mind bending process to me 
Once armed with your knowledge I will be ready to go back duke it out 
with my WIP
Happy Writing and Reading!!
Talina
Comment
Talina!! Hello again! Did you read the book with the character who has your name?
I hope so.
Okay, your questions and these are tough, guys. You’re killing me.
You ask “where would the inner conflict fit in my plot threads.” Well, I think the best way to explain that is to say that inner conflict and external conflict should be closely related. Meaning, whatever the internal conflict is (she is terrified of guns because her father was killed in random act of violence) should clash head on with external conflict (she needs the help of a sniper who wears a gun like she wears glasses), and they you cannot separate the two. (That is all from THEN YOU HIDE, by the way.)
Does that make sense? The inner conflict is RELATED to the external conflict. The reason he/she can’t attack the ex conflict head on is because it tortures them internally.
Second ? was…let me go look…oh the dreaded plotting question. I write a story plan, not a plot. It tells me WHAT is going to happen (they will find dead body, someone will threaten their lives) but not HOW (in the backyard jacuzzi, or on the road). If I know “what” has to happen, then I let my inner storyteller drive “how” it’s going to happen when I get to that scene.
Does that help? I hope so! Great to see you again, Talina!
Rocki
Comment
Alas, Roxi, I was mistaken on which bullet catcher book I had in my TBR pile. I have KILL ME TWICE. I went to my local bookstore and they didn’t have NOW YOU RUN. I want it in paperback instead of ebook format so I am going to order it though my bookstore here in Puerto Vallarta. They did however have KILLER CURVES and I got that. I start that right after your KILL ME TWICE (which I hope to cozy up with tonight after dinner).
Roxanne, you nailed my questions to a ‘T’. You are so smart!!! Seriously
Thank you for taking the time to answer. I think I like your ’story plan’ method. I going to tackle my WIP with that in mind and see if I can get myself moving along.
Comment
Whoa, I’m falling behind on questions.
Hang on for a few – I’m finishing up a big action scene, then will return to the jungle and answer like crazy. There may be some 
involved if I get this scene done! 
Comment
Hi Roxanne,
Congrats on the new releases. My favorite is Chase and I wish his story was longer.
Comment
Oh, Jane. I loved Chase!!
Here’s a Big Fat Secret. Chase Ryker was the hero of my first manuscript that never sold. He was an astronaut, and I resurrected him for that novella.
Novellas are short by nature…sorry if you felt cheated!
I take that as a very high compliment, though!
Rocki
Comment
Dear Rocki,
Who am I going to sit next to at the Pocket dinner next year at RWA? Sniff.
(Kidding)
You are an inspiration, lady! 24 books makes my head spin! Here’s my question — do you find it harder to write from the hero’s POV or the heroine’s? :)
Love ya! I have a copy of Make Her Pay on my nightstand as we speak.
Jill
Comment
My dearest, sweetest Succubus (sp???)-writing Jill!
You’ll be fine at the Pocket dinner, although I 
for not being there anymore. It’s a great party.
Hero or heroine POV. Hmmmm. I guess I like the heroine better because it’s easier, but I write a lot of hero POV because it’s fun to get in a guy’s head and mess it all up.
So great to see you here!
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Lol about messing up the hero’s head. And that, right there, is why we write, eh? :)
This Q&A was such a fun idea. Congrats again!
Comment
Hi Rocki,
Actually I had read books by you before RWA but you were such fun & a great sales person. Yesterday I picked up Hunt Her Down & Carly’s Lucky Break I am looking forward to both books. Sadly I have two library books to read before starting on the new books I bought!! It is always good to have lots in the TBR pile.
Welcome to the Jungle, even though I’m late getting here!! I became a fan of yours after RWA in San Francisco when you talked me into the two books you were signing! You promised I wouln’t be sorry, I wasn’t!!
The new series sounds good I’m sure we will be hearing more later on as it gets closer to a release date.
Glad you came to visit us in the Jungle. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.
Comment
Thank you, Donna! So glad I made you a fan!
And thanks for coming by!
Rocki
Comment
Hi Roxie! Welcome back to the jungle! So excited to here u released more bullet catcher books! I finished the one I had the RWA conference in DC when I met u, did ur books ever come to the RWA conference?
Comment
Hi Elisa! No, my books never showed at RWA. :*&#!: But, you know, I had the best time at that booksigning. I didn’t have to beg anyone to buy, and I just laughed and talked and made a party out of it.
The only way to fly, I say!
Thanks for stopping by!
Rocki
Comment
More books for my ever-growing TBR pile! Thanks for visiting with us.
Comment
GSM – it may topple, that TBR, but I hope I’m at the top! Along with the Plotmonkeys!
Thanks for commenting!
Rocki
Comment
You posted the link on Twitter, thought I’d stop by and say hi. I love your books and your interviews, the stories you tell and all of that. (And I love you) :)
So, my question, would you like to learn another language fluently and maybe write a book in that language?
Comment
I am so daunted by you bi-lingual girls. I have stumbled through French, Italian, Spanish and (thanks to you!!) Portuguese…I am happy to master English.
Love you, too, Barbie!
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Don’t have a question just want to thank you so much for your wonderful books! I really love the storylines and I recommend them to people all the time. (I’m a librarian.) I’m glad that you feel you are doing what you’re meant to do and I just want you to know that you are appreciated!
Comment
Oh, Rose the Librarian. I shed tears of joy that you love my books. Librarians are….
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
What book will you never forget – be it gutwrenching, funny or whatever? And what authors are autobuys for you?
Comment
What book will I never forget? WHAT AN AMAZING QUESTION, PAT!
GONE WITH THE WIND, for making a reader out of me.
JANE EYRE, for making me fall in love with the dark hero.
SWEET SAVAGE LOVE, for introducing me to a ripped bodice.
MISTRAL’S DAUGHTER, for giving me the epic romance.
MORNING GLORY, for ripping tears from me on every page
MR. PERFECT, for making me realize suspense could be humorous
NOBODY’S BABY BUT MINE, for giving me the final push that made me want to write romance.
I could go on all night….
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Thanks for a great answer. I always like to hear who authors love to read and what books are their favs.
Comment
If I may add, some that I will never forget – gutwrenching Sarah’s Child – Linda Howard, Three Wishes – Barbara Delinsky, Home Again by Kristin Hannah and funny which I re-read a few times and I am not a re-reader – SEP’s Nobody’s Baby But Mine. And I too could go on and on.
Comment
Comment
Slowly but surely????
I know you’re busy, so I’ll forgive that. And expect a 4:00 AM “I LOVED IT” text!
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Welcome Back to the Jungle! And “Hello Everyone” from my very long road trip from my home in St. Joseph, Mo to South Bend, In where I just watched the Univ. Of Notre Dame Football team rock!! Go Irish!! Congrads on your new book!
Questions: What character(s) could you have not ever lived without writing about? And what character(s) would you if you could, leave out or written out of any of your books?
Comment
Hey Lisa, Go Irish Indeed! I’ve got a close and deep family ties to ND, so
What character could I not have written? Lucy Sharpe.
What character do I wish I could have left out of any book?……Not one I can think of. If he or she was in the book, they had a purpose.
Thanks for stopping by!
Rocki
Comment
Hi~
Your list of books that you will never forget is very good and I have read and loved most of them. Do you have a favorite character from one of these books and why is he or she your favorite?
Have a great weekend.
Comment
Hi Lori – I just always love the hero. I’m a sucker for hot guys with
Thanks for stopping by!
Rocki
Comment
Hi, Rocki, I am a day late and a dollar short as usual LOL but I am glad I found the plotmonkeys and your interview. I have a short review on my website and I will send a longer one to you soon about Hunt Her Down. Loved it as I have all your novels in the past.
I wish you well in your new endeavor. Geez, I didn’t know we went back all the way to 2002!
XXOOXX
Heide
Comment
If I may add, some that I will never forget – gutwrenching Sarah’s Child – Linda Howard, Three Wishes – Barbara Delinsky, Home Again by Kristin Hannah and funny which I re-read a few times and I am not a re-reader – SEP’s Nobody’s Baby But Mine. And I too could go on and on.
Comment
Just started to read Make Her Pay. Love it. Rocki, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. You don’t just push the evelope, you fold it into an intricate piece of origami for the pleasure of your readers. I’m already hooked.
Take care
XXOOXX
Heide
P.S. How do you snag the little critters above:-)
Comment
Heide! You are the BEST! Thank you for stopping by and what a sweet compliment. I
you. (Just click on the critter and it magically appears in your text – one of the reasons the plotmonkeys blog is the BEST in town.)
xoxo
Rocki
Comment
Rocki, don’t want to waste your time, but I did leave a short note on my blog http://heidekatros.com about Hunt Her Down. I am trying to get a blog started as Reviewer’s Choice. Course, I am that reviewer
You have such wonderful talent and your whole personality comes through in your writing.
XXOOXX
Heide
Comment
I really enjoyed First You Run! Now, I’m 9 behind!! I will catch up soon!!!
Looking forward to your next series!!