Author Interview: Rachell Nichole

EQ Welcomes Rachell Nichole

EQ: Welcome to EQ! Tell us a little bit about yourself!

Rachell: Hi everyone. Thanks so much for having me stop by today. I’m Rach and I write erotic romance. (I always feel like I’m at an Erom Anonymous meeting when I start like that). I really love romance and most of its subgenres, but right now I’m mostly writing contemporary erotic romance. I like to call them Sizzling Romantic Entanglements. I really enjoy putting my characters through their paces on the journey to love. I live in New York with a mountain of books and a cuddly (though sometimes invisible) cat.

EQ:Tell us a little bit about your most recent release.

Rachell: My latest book is Break(Through) the Ice. It’s a novella-length book about an author and the actor who inspired her characters. I had a lot of fun writing this book. It was really cool writing about a writer. J Here’s some more info:

When Jasmine Graves is invited to the set of the movie based on her shapeshifter book series, she thinks her dreams have come true. The Vince Demarco will be there, and she can’t wait to meet him. Little does she know that she’ll have to face her worst fears to keep her leading man.

Vince Demarco has never been as intrigued by a role or a writer as he is with his current alpha werewolf character and its creator. So when he comes face to face with Jasmine Graves herself, he’s awestruck. But he fears an author who’s a reported recluse will want nothing to do with the paparazzi madness and crazy schedule that comes with dating a movie star.

Neither one can deny the animal attraction that overwhelms them at first contact. But will the heat between them turn to ice in the harsh winter cold of the Adirondack Camp?

EQ: What kinds of female characters do you prefer to write?

Rachell: I really enjoy spunky female characters. I can’t stand it when a heroine is mopey or feels sorry for herself all the time. I’m not saying that I don’t want my heroines to be vulnerable in some aspects of their lives or that they won’t lean on their leading lady or man, but it’s important to me that my females can stand on their own two feet when they need to. Some of them are more brazen, others a bit more reserved, but they’re all kick ass in their own ways.

EQ: What kinds of male characters do you prefer to write?

Rachell: I like damaged alpha males. Whether it’s a rough run-in with love in the past, a fear of commitment, or the hyper-focus on the career instead of love, I make my guys really work for their ladies to win them over in the end. I really like writing a man who is secure in himself, or pretends that he is, and who learns to grow and move on with his life through his relationship with my heroines.

EQ: What is the biggest risk you’ve taken in your writing?

Rachell: That’s got to be the book I just finished writing. I plunged head-first into the BDSM deep end with Domestic Discipline Needed. I had this idea for a book over a year ago, but I was too busy with other books that I didn’t have time to write it. When I did, I turned to a good friend and fellow erom author, Nona Raines, who helped steer me in the right direction. I don’t think I’ve ever done as much research for a book as I did for that one. I studied some books, joined some online communities where I could get all of my pesky questions answered, and generally got sucked down into this world of dark eroticism for four solid months, ignoring pretty much everyone and everything going on in the real world. It was a big leap for me to write in the genre and I love the finished product.

Find Rachell Nichole at these places:

website: www.RachellNichole.com
blog: www.DivasofDesire.blogspot.com
Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/RachellNichole
Twitter: @RachellNichole
Goodreads Profile page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6520697.Rachell_Nichole
Amazon Profile page: http://www.amazon.com/Rachell-Nichole/e/B0091G7SG8/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2?qid=1386704125&sr=8-2

The Genesis of a Book - Inn on the Edge by Gail Bridges

You're Writing WHAT?

How I Came to Write an Erotic Horror Novel

 Not long ago, a friend asked about my new novel, Inn on the Edge. She wanted to know: Why erotic horror? Why not straight-up romance? Good question! It made me sit down and think about the genesis of my story, way back when the idea was nothing but wisps of unformed ideas, insubstantial yet demanding attention. My friend had good timing - the release date for Inn on the Edge was finally within shouting distance.

The story goes like this:

Soon after my first erotic novel was published, I had a conversation with Carrie Jackson, a lovely editor from Ellora's Cave. I was lucky enough to sit and speak with her at the Emerald City Writer's Conference in Bellevue, Washington in October of 2013. Although she is not my personal Ellora's Cave editor, she took the time to share with me what the publisher most wanted to see - at the top of their wish list: erotic horror.

Apparently, erotic horror is fiendishly difficult to write. Carrie told me that authors are daunted at the prospect. Ellora's Cave doesn't get nearly the submissions they would like in the genre. "How about you write one?" Carrie asked.

Indeed. As if that would happen.

But I couldn't stop thinking about what Carrie had told me. Erotic Horror? What a difficult, wonderful combination! How to combine  two such opposite-seeming things in the same story? How could I create a scenario where the main characters are scared shitless, fearing for their lives ... and yet have plenty of time for hot, wild sex?  How could I write such a story and make it realistic?

I had to try.

First, I needed a great setting. It didn't take long to think of the wonderful old lodge on the Washington Coast where, long ago, I'd spent a romantic weekend. Such a place would be the ideal atmospheric setting for a horror novel.

 

Click here to see the Lake Quinault Lodge Website

Once I had the setting, the story came together piece by piece. I'd populate the Lodge (re-cast as a Bed-and-Breakfast Inn) with eager, bright-eyed newlywed couples. My story would be rife with erotic, passionate undercurrents - who better to get things going than four couples gathering together just after their weddings?

Next, I needed a bad guy. He'd be horrible and likable at the same time, a demon who would lure my unsuspecting main characters to his Inn and keep them captive. My antagonist slowly took form in my mind: he'd be a new kind of sex demon, scary, charming, charismatic, yet unable to touch his captives. But now I had a new problem - who was this demon who would play such a large part in my novel?

 It took a while to find my demon. My bad guy didn't take shape until about a month later when my husband, my grown daughter, and I were eating take-out Thai food. I mentioned my Demon-in-the-Inn idea.

"Sounds interesting," said my daughter.

"But I'm having a problem getting a handle on the demon character," I said around a mouthful of noodles.

"What's his name?" asked my husband, "Start with a name."

I just stared at him blankly.

"It ought to be something foreign-sounding!" said my daughter.

"Yeah - like this..." said my husband, shoving the Pad Thai container toward me.

My daughter shook her head. "Pad Thai? Are you kidding? Not good enough."

"Okay." He thought for a moment, then grinned. "What was the name of that Ethiopian place we ate lunch at last week? That sounded foreign!"

We looked it up. Adey Abeba.

 

Click here to go to the website of Seattle's Adey Abeba restaurant

And that was it. I knew immediately, no looking back. It was the name of the capitol of Ethiopia, and referred to a certain charming yellow flower that grew abundantly there (which plays a small part in my novel). 

I changed the spelling: Adi Abiba. He was now Mr. Adi Abiba, proprietor of the unique Bed-and-Breakfast destination Inn on the Edge. I could see my demon clearly, so very clearly! He was tall and imposing and he wore flowing robes. He had an infectious laugh and a gaze that could skewer you. It took only a moment for Mr. Abiba to became a fully-formed character.

And then ... I was off to the races! I now had everything I needed for my erotic horror novel, Inn on the Edge. All I had to do was write it.

Blurb

 

Angela and her brand-new husband Josh have just arrived at their honeymoon destination, a romantic bed-and-breakfast hotel on the breath-taking Washington coast—the Inn on the Edge.

 

But everything isn’t as it seems. The lessons that come free with the room aren’t for painting the lovely coastal scenery—the lessons are for better sex. Angie and Josh, shocked and titillated, immerse themselves in every sensual offering.

 

It doesn’t take long for things to go horribly wrong. They discover that the old man running the place is a sex demon, who has been stealing their sensual energy. Worse, he’s dangerously in love with Angie and he has plans for her—plans involving an heirloom wedding ring.

 

Inside Scoop:  This book contains scenes of unbridled demon-inspired passion—girls with girls, boys with boys, twosomes, threesomes and more! A Romantica erotic horror romance from Ellora’s Cave





Buy Links for Inn on the Edge:

Ellora's Cave Link: http://www.ellorascave.com/inn-on-the-edge.html

Amazon Kindle Link: http://amzn.to/1kxCh1t

 

Find Gail Bridges online:

Website: www.gailbridges.com

Blog: http://gailbridges.blogspot.com/

Twitter: GailWBridges

New! Better Left Unsaid Wednesday.

Our Wednesday meme highlights those thought bubbles over our characters' heads. Do they say one thing and think another? Do they inwardly muse, ponder, laugh, fret, jeer, doubt, rage etc?

In comments, and in 300 words or less, give us a snippet from your novel that describes what your heroes, heroines, or bit players are thinking. If you are unable to post thoughts in italics, wrap their thoughts with *   * so they're easy to spot. Don't forget your buy link and website/blog link. Have fun!

 Share that you're participating with our
ready-to-go tweet:

Come see my snippet on Exquisite Quills' Better Left Unsaid Wednesday! http://exquisitequills.blogspot.com/ #AuthorRT #Romance #EQuills

Tickle Us Tuesday!

In comments, and in 300 words or less, give us a snippet from your novel that will bring a smile, incite a giggle, or make us laugh out loud. Don't forget your buy link and website/blog link. Have fun!

Share your participation with a ready-to-go tweet:

Come see my snippet on Exquisite Quills' Tickle Us Tuesday! http://exquisitequills.blogspot.com/ #AuthorRT #Romance #EQuills

Wash Line Monday!

Our Monday meme shines a light on apparel. From Regency to Steampunk, and everything in between, we dress our characters to reflect the story we want to tell.

In comments, and in 300 words or less, give us a snippet from your novel that describes what your heroes, heroines, or bit players are wearing. Don't forget your buy link and website/blog link. Have fun!

 Share that you're participating with our
ready-to-go tweet:

Come see my snippet on Exquisite Quills' Wash Line Monday! http://exquisitequills.blogspot.com/ #AuthorRT #Romance #EQuills

Set the Scene in Six!

So sorry the post is late. Apparently the auto-scheduling is still not working.

One of the finest aspects of fiction writing is the ability to set the scene.  Characters act and react, but they don't do so in a vacuum.  In their world, they meet, fall in love, solve problems, sometimes horrendous problems.  Maybe it's a small town, maybe the big city, the green, humid jungle, dust-dry desert, a mountainous region.  On the sea.  Under the sea.  In space! 

Setting the scene sets up the unexpected. It's also done by using character dialogue to paint a picture of loveliness, danger, evil, trepidation, excitement, awe...

Give us six sentences that set the scene and tout your talent.  How have you set the scene or the lead-up in your books?  Post your six sentences, your website/blog link, and one buy link in the comment box. 

 Share your participation with our
ready-to-go tweet!

Come see my snippet on Exquisite Quills' Set the Scene in Six! http://exquisitequills.blogspot.com/ #AuthorRT #Romance #EQuills