Gayl’s questions to Karyn:
Since we
both share a love for baseball, and our hero in WILD PITCH is a baseball
player, tell me who your “All Star” line up of baseball heartthrobs are and
why?
I’d start with a young Lou Gehrig. This man was built; ever see that old black
& white footage of him with his shirt off? Plus he was handsome, and a
decent guy. So very sad he was cut down in his prime with ALS. I can’t watch
the Lou Gehrig speech either by Lou himself, or Gary Cooper doing it in Pride of the Yankees, without tearing
up. I even forgive Lou for being a Yankee!
Being a Red Sox fan, I will also have to add in a
young Ted Williams. He was a big, good looking guy with a flawless swing. Also
a war hero (flyer in WWII and Korean War) Ted was not a perfect man, but his
passion for the game and his killer smile melted a lot of hearts. Young Ted was
movie-star handsome!
I would certainly add a few of today’s players,
from 2013’s Buzzfeed list of Baseball hunks, you can add a few of these guys!
http://www.buzzfeed.com/ricks15/hunks-of-major-league-baseball-a-team-by-team-bre-4cvv
If you were
going to cast yourself in the role of one of your heroines, which would it be?
Deanna from My
Vampire Cover Model (Decadent Publishing) In fact, she is me in a lot of
ways. Just an ordinary girl working in a department store. That was me some
years back; I even gave Deanna my job as price co-ordinator. Many a day during
my dull tasks at work I daydreamed of a handsome guy walking in and rescuing me
from the doldrums. How wonderful I was able to bring this fantasy to life on
the written page~
What has been the
toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best
compliment?
Hmmm. I guess that I am not the most polished of
writers (thank you to my editors!), but I am striving to improve. The best
compliment? That my characters seem real. That I am a good story-teller. That
means a lot.
Which of your
characters would you like to spend the day with?
I’d love to spend the day with all of them! I think
I will pick Cailin Thorburn from My
Highlander Cover Model (Decadent Publishing). He is from the past (early
1800’s) and has a killer, sexy accent (Yes, I did another time-travel!) Cailin
is also smart, funny, and entertaining. Spending the day with him would be
cool. I would insist he wear the kilt. Shirtless. And hold a big sword. Yeah.
If you could have a
romantic fling with one of your heroes (with no consequences, of course), which
would it be and why?
I love tortured heroes, so I will have to say Simon,
the hero in The Governess and the Beast.
Though scarred, he makes me melt. Historical hero who feels things deeply, but
afraid to show it? I’m in. And my inner cougar would have to say Barrett from Wild Pitch is a close second.
Passionate, sexy, and he just goes all in, physically and emotionally. *sigh*
Notice I couldn’t pick just one. :-)
Karyn’s questions to Gayl:
What cartoon character best represents
your personal philosophy?
As strange as this will sound, Wile E. Coyote, not because
he's a bad guy per se but because no matter how many times he falls off a cliff
or ends up with a piano crashing down on him, he perseveres. I know what it's
like to chase a dream and have it just out of reach. Although my dreams and goals
aren't necessarily as nefarious as Wiley's, it's still hard to be so close and
then have that anvil fall hard on top of you. Despite that, you keep going.
Hmm, maybe I should have said Energizer Bunny...
Not everyone can
co-write with another author. How was the experience and would you do it again
with someone?
This was a wonderful experience and I would jump at
the chance to collaborate again with Karyn. I think we were both surprised at
how quickly we completed the first draft and how seamless it was. If I'm not
mistaken, we finished it in three weeks. I wish I could do that with all my
works in progress!
In Wild Pitch, we each took the POV of one of the
women and both contributed to Barrett's storyline. Where the lines crossed is
very difficult to tell. We maintained a consistent voice throughout the
process, which is difficult in my opinion. It takes trust and the ability to
set aside egos in order to do this so it isn't for everyone.
Tell us how you and
Karyn ‘met’ cyber-wise~
Karyn and I 'met' several years ago when we were involved
in the Sims community. We both used the Sims for storyboarding and posting
online. It was a great way to learn and grow with regard to writing, and the
feedback you get can be valuable. A friendship developed and grew from there.
Karyn was one of the few people who encouraged me to pursue my dream of
becoming a published writer. We have become critique partners and I have
learned so much from her publishing journey as well. I can safely say that
while we have never met in person, she is someone I am proud to consider a good
friend. And I adore her sense of humor, as well as the man candy she finds to
help spark one's creativity!
What are you
working on now?
I currently have a few stories on the writing
block. I can’t seem to focus on one so I have a few irons in the fire right
now. The first one is called Falling For
You, a story I hope will be the first of many in a baseball series. This
story took root after I took a fall at work, and it morphed into a really fun
story I hope to finish very soon. The
Sweet Spot is another in the baseball series that was about two thirds
complete when I realized it was a mess. This one is getting a makeover. The next
is what I hope will be one of a potential series about the rock industry titled,
Web of Desire. Then I have another
old WIP about a Navy SEAL that needs a total rewrite (and a title) one of these
days.
What romance genre
interests you the most (reading or writing or both) and why~
This is a tough one to answer because I love
reading all genres. As long as it transports me out of reality and entertains,
I'm there. One genre that stands out for me is paranormal romance. To me that
is fantasy at its finest. Vampires, angels, shape shifters - you can really let
your imagination run wild with characters like these. Heroes who are *ahem*
larger than life, who love deeply - I can't get enough. And I adore anything
historical.
As for what I like to write, it is definitely
contemporary romance. I'm a 'write what you know' sort of girl and basically
lazy. The idea of researching to write Regency or historical boggles my mind.
Or coming up with a mythos for a fantasy world or other-worldly character -
yeah, like I said, lazy.
You are at the bar,
The Cougar Cave. What men would you like to see saunter through the doors and
come sit at your table?
I'm glad you said 'men' because it would be so hard
to pick just one. Without question, I would choose Michael David Barre, model
and muse for Barrett in Wild Pitch. This man has fueled more than one naughty
fantasy. Those abs, those pecs, those biceps, those hip bones...
I'd also add Mike Matheny, former major league
baseball catcher and current Cardinals manager to the list. I've had a crush on
him for ages and he is the inspiration for Tate in The Sweet Spot. I'd pick
Chad Kroeger from Nickelback, not because he is hot, but because that voice of
his could melt the socks (and a few other articles of clothing) off me. Then I’d
add Adam Levine because he is sexy, charming, funny, and uber-talented. I could
go on and on–-I love men.
I do get to take them home, right? *wink*
Sign up for Karyn’s newsletter (I will not spam)
Follow Karyn Gerrard on Twitter https://twitter.com/KarynGerrard
This was a fun interview I have to say...
ReplyDeleteWe certainly like to talk about hot guys, lol~
Delete