AUTHOR CHAT DATES

BookStrand Romance
Mainstream romance
Submission: OPEN

Classic and Allure
Erotic romance
Submission: OPEN

Ménage Amour and
 Ménage & More
Ménage romance
Submission: OPEN

PolyAmour
Multiple partner sharing romance
Submission: OPEN

Ménage Everlasting
Collector's sets and special series
Submission: CLOSED
 

URL: http://ElizaMarch.com

ABOUT ELIZA

Eliza March has always have been a big fan of Little Women, then she started reading voraciously after discovering Nancy Drew, and before long the authors and subjects grew exponentially. She reads everything from Art History to Erotica, and still loves a good mystery thanks to Nancy.

At one time she wrote non-fiction, straying into fiction from journalism, library science and marketing, until she discovered satisfaction in fiction. There she found she could build a world to her liking, twist the stories, and sometimes, if the characters cooperated, even determine what happened in the plot.

Visit her website http://ElizaMarch.com, or for more up-to-date rants stop by her blog at http://elizamarch.blogspot.com.

For those of you interested, she’s on Facebook, but claims she can’t Twitter... “I guess I’m too easily distracted.”

“My future plans include lengthening my books and shortening my titles.” ~ Eliza March ~

INTERVIEW

Q: What did you first read? How did you begin to write? Who were the first to read what you wrote?

A: The first real series I read voraciously was Nancy Drew, then the authors and subjects grew exponentially. I devour everything from art history to erotica, and I still love a good mystery, thanks to Nancy.

I eventually strayed into fiction writing from journalism. Here was a world I could build to my liking, and sometimes, if the characters let me push and prod them, I determine what happens next.

My family and friends were the first to read my amateurish attempts at creative writing. Now I have critique partners to punish with my wordy choices.

Once I started writing erotica, I only let my critique partners read it.

 
Q: What is your favorite genre?

A: Suspense is my favorite genre. I don't care if it's romantic, paranormal, horror, or erotic. I want a suspense.

 
Q: What is your creative process like? What happens before sitting down to write?

A: I wake up in the morning or during the night with the stories running around in my head. I can't wait to put them down on paper...then the process begins!

 
Q: What type of reading inspires you to write?

A: There isn't much that doesn't motivate me. My favorite authors inspire my work. History is also a great motivator. It gets your imagination visualizing what life was like during the specific time period you're studying, who's living and what's happening to them...then anything goes from there.

 
Q: What do you think are the basic ingredients of a story?

A: 1. Character. Character drives the plot in my opinion. If I'm interested in characters, I'll stick with a slow paced plot, just because I want to see what happens to them. I hate books that have great plots and during the conflict I don't care if the hero dies. It makes me feel harsh, very harsh.

2. Plot. I like a well developed plot, even in short stories. Weave a good tale with twists and turns and I'll follow you anywhere.

3. Conflict. There's no story without one. The bigger the conflict the more there is to the story. It's the meat and potatoes in the story stew.
       
4. Voice. The author's voice makes the story personal. Don't you think somewhere deep down, there's a part of Charlaine Harris who really is Sooky Stackhouse or one of her southern Louisiana characters? I'm sure of it! Voice -- You either love it or hate it! It becomes your 'comfort zone' once you enter the author's world.

 
Q: What well known writers do you admire most?

A: Norah Roberts. How fast do you think she types? Unfortunately I never took typing, so I'm so jealous of anyone who can use more than a couple of fingers on a keyboard or a piano.

 
Q: What is required for a character to be believable? How do you create yours?

A: The character has to act in a believable manner. Put them in a situation and let them react realistically. My characters act out. I'm just the conduit to the paper, or screen if you are an eBook reader.

 
Q: Are you equally good at telling stories orally?

A: No, I don't have an internal editor in my mouth.

 
Q: Deep down inside, who do you write for?

A: Me. The process of writing the tale is as good as reading it. It takes longer, requires more blood, sweat, and tears, but that's the challenge. Nothing worth anything comes without hard labor.

Why do I write for me? Because I'm an avid reader. If I like the subject, the plot, and most of all the characters, I hope others will too.

 
Q: Do you participate in competitions? Have you received any awards?

A: I rarely enter contests. I finished one place out of the running recently for a book I'm crazy about writing. I'll send it out there again and see how it does. Contests, like taste, are very subjective. I don't write cookie-cutter romance. I break rules, so I don't fit into a comfortable niche and neither do my stories.

 
Q: Do you share rough drafts of your writings with someone whose opinion you trust?

A: Sure, always. I think my words are golden until someone else slaps me back to reality. I'd write slop if left to my own devices. I like words too much, especially adverbs and adjectives, and I like to share them.

 
Q: Do you believe you have already found "your voice," or is that something one is always searching for?

A: I definitely have a voice, sometimes too many, and I have to add more characters to satisfy my urge to sound different. That works in dialogue. My true voice is emerging and strengthening with each book I write. Frightening, isn't it?


Q: What do you surround yourself with in your work area in order to help you concentrate?

A: Cork board and white boards, sticky notes, tacks and dry erase markers. Crystals and stars, pixies and angels. They work very hard to keep me focused. Prayer most of all.

 
Q: Do you write on a computer? Do you print frequently? Do you correct on paper? What is your process?

A: I write on a computer, infrequently print and correct. Tantrums and sticky notes play an important role in my revisions.

 
Q: What are you working on now?

A: I was writing a contemporary piece stuck in travelogue mode until the book turned into another paranormal. Sultry Santorini Sunset was going to be an erotic trip to the exotic Greek Island some believed may have been the Lost Continent of Atlantis. The story could almost replace the trip itself. Reading and writing these eBooks provides instant gratification when you're in a mood for a specific genre.

For now, I have a full plate and this is one question I love updating. It means I'm showing progress!