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August 25, 2011

The PP gals welcome: author Karilyn Bentley


Tell us about yourself. How long have you been writing? Thank you for having me here today. I'm so excited! I've been writing since 2001 or 2002. I remember sitting in my then cube and thinking that I needed to find something to do so I could sit home and eat bon-bons. I had these stories running around in my head and decided to put them on paper. Still haven't found the bon-bons. :) But I have a bunch of nice, invisible friends that like to talk to me.

How did you get from  research coordinator to writing romance? Apparently, I'm an overachiever, as I think I already answered this in the previous question. :) If you must know, I did not start out writing romance. I'm not sure what you would call what I first wrote (it's hiding in the closet now), but although it had some romantic elements in it, it wasn't a romance. I hadn't read a romance in years b/c I thought them silly. Then I picked up one of Sherrilyn Kenyon's at a book faire at work and was hooked. Didn't realize it was a romance until I was partway in and it was so good I didn't put it down. Once I realized the genre had changed and had paranormal critters, I started reading all sorts of romance. Always heard that you should write what you read, so there you go. Romance story coming up. Of course, thinking of the story took some doing. :)
Who is your favorite author(s) and why? This changes, but currently my favs are J.R. Ward and George R. R. Martin. Maybe I have a thing for initials. Ha! I like JRW b/c her dialogue rocks and her characters are gritty and you just can't put down the book. My friends call them the crack series b/c we read them over and over and over, well, you get the picture.
Tell us about your new book. In a world where men can become dragons, Thoren is one of the most powerful. As a shape-shifting Draconi, Thoren wants nothing more than to continue searching for Halfling children, and returning them to Draconia. The last thing he wants or needs is a mate-until he meets Keara, an outcast unaware of the power that lies within her. Keara doesn't know what to make of Thoren or of the magic he practices. She learned early to keep her magic hidden-her witchy red hair and green eyes are burden enough. When Thoren offers his hand in place of a forced marriage with Lord Simon, Keara jumps at the chance to leave her town behind. But she fears Thoren will shun her when he discovers the truth about her abilities. Can Thoren convince Keara she is his lifemate, or will her secret talent be the wedge that drives them apart?
“I know enough to realize she denied you.” The stranger growled at Lord Simon, his voice gentling as he turned to Keara. “She will take me though, won’t you?”
  Keara locked her gaze on the stranger, drawn by his green eyes that looked so much like her own. She had never seen green eyes on anyone else, but knew what they meant. Remembered what her grandmother had told her about them.
  “Green eyes are the mark of evil, girl,” the old woman liked to say. “Be wary of them.”
  The wind whipped the stranger’s hair about his face. A chiseled jaw topped by firm lips that whitened around the edges and a long straight nose comprised a face tightened in anger. His compelling eyes bored into hers.
  She couldn’t stop staring at those eyes, all the while his fingers continued their steady pattern against her mark, sending sensuous feelings coursing through her veins.
  A stranger or Lord Simon? The man whose touch sent zingers of pleasure throughout her body, or the possibly crazy, but socially acceptable man who might have her best interest in mind. Did she actually think that?
There was no choice. It took two tries to get the words out of her dry mouth.
 “I’ll take you.” She lifted her chin toward the stranger and said a silent prayer he would spare her life.

 What is the appeal of writing romance? I like the fact that a happy ending is a requirement. And that no matter what happens to your hero and heroine, they will always get together in the end.
 What kind of writings turns you off? I'm all about the happy ending. If a story doesn't end happily, then it upsets me and I won't read another story by that author again, even if I loved the story up until that point. Head hopping also turns me off when done often. Certain violence turns me off and I can't read the book, even if the bad guy gets it in the end.
What stops you from writing? The TV? Chores? Life is the big one. I work a FT job, so making time to write takes some effort. I'm not as disciplined as most writers.
How do you get your ideas? Sometimes someone says something that triggers an idea, a what-if. Other times I just get an overall idea and then the details are fleshed out as I write the story. What is your writing day like? I come home from work, exercise, eat and try to get in an hour of writing. On the days I'm off, it depends. Sometimes I can get 3 or 4 hours of writing and other times I'm lucky to get 10 minutes.
Can you share three writing tips? Nothing original. These have all been said before. Butt in chair, hands on keyboard. Never give up, never surrender (Galaxy Quest); When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Fill in this blank: Your ideal fictional hero would think you gorgeous if you turned into a dragon and breathed fire. (That's a hard one' so, I pretended that I was my heroine Keara. I hope you'll excuse it. :
How much do you love cake? Umm, I've been known to eat an entire one in a sitting. I guess that would be a lot of love there. :)

22 comments:

Addison said...

Karilyn:

I'm so looking forward to reading this book! Your hero sounds wonderfully yummy!!! :-)

I also think your writing advice is spot on. It's the tried and true - put the bum in the chair - that never fails.

Happy New Release!
Addison

Pamela Stone said...

Karilyn,

Thanks for stopping by and talking to us. Like you, I sat in a cube in Corporate America and dreamed of stories I wanted to finish. It's great to make those dreams come true. But alas, like you, even though I work from home now, Corporate America still pays the bills. But don't you just love the imaginary friends we've made? Your book sounds great.

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Addison,
Thank you for stopping by! Hope you like Thoren! I love your lastest release, couldn't put it down.

Have a great day!

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Pamela,
Thank you! I do love all those imaginary friends I've made. :) Keep on writing! Hope you enjoy the book!

Diana Cosby said...

Hi Karilyn,
Fun interview. Magical Lover sounds like a fun read. If you find those bon bons, let me know. :) Take care and I wish you every success!

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Diane,
Thank you for stopping by and for the kind words! I'll be sure to let you know if I ever find the bon-bons. :)

Have a great day!

Vicki Batman, sassy writer said...

Hi, Karilyn. A wonderful interview, fun excerpt, nice gal.

Thanks for being with the PP

Kathy Ivan said...

Karilyn

Thanks so much for joining the Plotting Princesses today. Your cover is absolutely gorgeous!

Plus Dragons. I mean, who can resist a dragon shifter--aren't we all a little bit of a damsel in distress when we think about dragons!

Your book sound terrific and the excerpt just enough to pique people's interest. I can't wait to read this!

Patricia said...

Loved this post. I always enjoy hearing "write what you like to read" because that's how I started out writing. And the simple, yet proven, tips such as BIC HOK, butt in chair, hands on keys works every time.
Patti

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Vicki,
Thank you so much for having me! I'm glad you liked the interview. :)

Have a great day!

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Kathy,
I think the cover is great too! I'm fortunate to have gotten such a wonderful cover artist. And I love dragons. :) Hope you enjoy the book!

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Patti,
Thank you for stopping by! I'm glad you liked the advice, although I've gotta admit, it's not original. :) But I do find it helpful. Glad you did too!

Have a great day!

Sylvia McDaniel said...

Karilyn,
Great interview. I like happy endings too and NO Violence. See enough on TV. But I love it when the hero/heroine have to face big conflicts and find true love. When is your book out? Did I miss that information?

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Sylvia,
Thank you for stopping by! My book came out last Friday. Woot!! Thank you for asking! It's on Amazon or The Wild Rose Press. Or you can follow the links on my website (put in by my wonderful hubster): www.karilynbentley.com

Hope you like it!

Liz Lipperman said...

Hey, Kaitlyn, welcome to The Plotting Princesses blog. I loved your excerpt and your bad-boy hero (at least I think he's a bad boy.) Hes got green eyes, right?

Anyway, I'm looking forward to reading this story. I have to add that although I write mysteries, I always sneak in a little romance.

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Liz,
Thank you! Yes, Thoren has green eyes. :) I hope you enjoy reading the story!

Have a great day!

Phyllis said...

Hi Karilyn,

Welcome to PP and thank you so much for a great post. Your book sounds like fun and I will leave ‘dragon writing' in your capable hands. Thank you for happy endings!

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Phyllis,
Thank you for having me! Glad you liked the post. Hope you enjoy the book!

Have a great evening!

Kathy Ivan said...

Thanks, again, Karilyn for dropping by and spending the day with the Plotting Princesses. And special thanks for all our guest for dropping by and leaving comments. You all are GREAT! Thanks.

Karilyn Bentley said...

Hi Kathy,
Thank you so much for having me here today on PP! It's been a lot of fun chatting with all of you!

Hope you have a great evening!

Lark Howard said...

Terrific interview!

Caroline Clemmons said...

Great advice, Kerilyn. And I love the wonderful photo--looks just like your sweet smile.