Exquisite Quills Welcomes Diane Leyne for our Author Interview Series
EQ: Welcome to EQ!
Tell us a little bit about yourself!
Diane: I, my name is
Diane Leyne. I’ve been writing erotic
romance for almost a year now. I love to
read. I also love photography and
travel. I’ve been to more than twenty
countries and hope to visit twenty more.
In May, I visited St. Maarten for the first time, and made it a jumping
off point for the Libertine Island books.
Hopefully, I’ll be able to combine the two passions in the future.
EQ: What was your
defining moment as a writer?
Diane: I’m still
pretty new at this. I’ve made a couple
of failed attempts to write a few times in the past, but last Christmas, I
decided that, this time, I was going to finish and submit a story and I did. In fact, I can be a bit OCD, so when I sent
off the first novella, before I even got an answer back, I wrote and submitted
three more. I can’t tell you how
exciting it was to get that first acceptance email from Siren. I was at work and just over the moon with
happiness. I guess this is a long way of
saying that my defining moment when I took a chance and, to paraphrase the
words of Nike, “Just did it”
EQ:Describe how you
came up with the plot of your novel.
Diane: I have the
basic plot in my head when I start writing, but not much more than that. I know the beginning, I know the ending, and
I know a few scenes in the middle. For
example, with “Claimed by Wolves”, I “saw” the scene where Samantha punishes
Gabe for spying on her by putting a collar and leash on him and parading him
through town and in front of his brothers.
He wanted to play the pet dog, so she decides to let him, but following
her rules. I usually figure out each
section when I’m in transit to or from someplace like work. I find that walking and riding the subway are
great opportunities to work out the next section of the plot and then when I
get home, I and start writing it. Often,
the characters go in directions or do things I didn’t expect when I started
writing and I just have to go with it.
EQ: What kinds of
female characters do you prefer to write?
Diane: I like to
think my female characters are strong women.
They don’t need a man or men to complete them. They are with the men because they love them
and their lives are fuller with the men in them, but they aren’t half a person
or incomplete if they don’t have a man. Even
if they are subs, they don’t allow themselves to be pushed around, except, of
course, during a scene. Outside a scene,
they are equals. The men may be protective, but they don’t give orders for day
to day living, or if they do, the women set them straight.
EQ: Tell us a little
bit about your most recent release.
Diane: My newest
“Taken by Wolves”. It’s the fourth in
the Call of the Wolf series.
I’m really proud of
the “Call of the Wolf” series. I’ve
included serious topics in books before, but the “Call of the Wolf” books, even
the first which is, in my opinion, quite funny, deals with issues of trust and
taking a chance between Samantha and the McAllister brothers, particularly the
Alpha, Gabe, whose trust issues spark the humour, as Sam won’t let him push her
around.
In the second book,
Alex, the Alpha, is a wounded war vet and Lena, the Mate he walked away from,
is the only one who can help him when he returns, but he’s ashamed to show
himself and his injuries to her. In the
third book, the Penelope and heroes are dealing with a Mating Ceremony that
won’t work and is a kind of allegory for infertility. Their monthly attempts at the ceremony are
turning sex into a chore and the frustration of failure is tearing them apart.
In book 3, there was
also a sub-plot with a fire that was likely arson. I revisit this in “Taken by Wolves”. The fire was
deliberate and part of a series of crimes against shifter. Hate-crimes.
Samantha’s brothers come to town to see her and check out her Mates, but
they have a second purpose. They are
tracking the purp who has now caused a death in one of the fires he has
set. In Harmony, they meet Ginger and
fall hard, but they have a job to do, as well, and it has to come first. The stakes escalate
when all the signs point to the fact that the bad guy may live in Harmony and
Ginger could be at risk.
Find out more about Diane Leyne and her titles:
Call
of the Wolf 4, Taken by Wolves
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