Sex is serious business. It’s enthralling, enthusiastic, invigorating and enervating. In addition to being fun, it’s funny. Which is what makes my erotic romances different from others’. Humor—even in my darkest erotic romance—is my “brand.” My author’s voice.

Some people upon meeting me express surprise that I write erotic romance. My response to that observation is this: I’m not so old I’ve forgotten the joys of making love. Nor am I so young that I’m embarrassed writing about those joys. In very explicit terms!

I’ve written short contemporary, romantic suspense, Regency and Victorian historicals. I never sold. Now I write erotic romances. My sixteenth book—Her Virtual Ecstasy—will release October 1, 2011. I think you can see why I write what I write. I have two more books—It Takes a Thief and Temptress of Time that are contracted, but don’t have release dates yet.

Why do I write what I write?

· Freedom of language: To ensure I avoid redundancy, I have an American Dictionary of Slang where I find lots of synonyms for sex parts. I also have a Dictionary of Euphemisms, which I don’t use much if at all.

· Freedom to fantasize: I remember being really angry at Erica Jung for revealing so many female fantasies in her novel Fear of Flying. Now I appreciate the freedom to imagine anything—and to write about it.

· Luck: In 2005 I ran in to Lynn LaFleur at the RWA conference in Reno, NV. She suggested I attend the “spotlight” on Ellora’s Cave Publishing. I won an anthology, loved every story in it, and wondered if I could write a story as funny and HOT as Charlotte Boyett Compo’s The Windsday Club. Inspired as I hadn’t been in a long time, I came home and wrote Passion’s Four Towers, which became my first sale ever.

· Freedom to explore new (for me) subgenres: I write Historical Fantasy because I can play fast and loose with historical details—except for certain words and making sure they were in use at the time. I really admire all you wonderful authors who write historically accurate and creative stories as well. I do try to stay accurate with clothes and weaponry, but the rest is out of my own imagination. I started writing Futuristic Fantasy because I needed something to occupy my time while I waited to hear about my historical fantasy. Both genres are a lot of fun to write. I probably will never write a paranormal, even though I read them a lot.

Since I first wrote this, I have written and sold a paranormal: Chosen. It’s available from eXtasy Books.

· Challenges: I love compound/complex sentences. Most e-publishers do not. Even commas are frowned on.

· Naming Creativity: I live with my Character Naming Sourcebook from The Writer’s Digest. I don’t even start writing until I’ve named all my major and most of my secondary characters. Naming is fun. For example, Passion’s Four Towers three brothers’ names are variations on the word “spear.”