Author Interview: SHELLEY MUNRO

Today we are joined by author of paranormal and contemporary romance Shelley Munro. Shelley's actually off sailing the Pacific right now, but before she left for distant waters, she sent us this peek inside The Bottom Line (now available from Samhain & for Kindle!). Welcome, Shelley! (Applause!)

What inspired you to write your current release?

My new release, The Bottom Line, is about a woman dipping her toe into the world of spanking. The Bottom Line relates her personal journey as she tries something new. It’s also a story about friendship and is the start of a new series for me. Future books will deal with Maggie’s friends. It was a fun story to write and the idea really did come from reading an erotic romance, much like Maggie’s idea to explore spanking in the book. I found myself curious about spanking and wondered if it really was a turn on, thus began Maggie’s adventures!

What do you find attractive in a hero?

I think the most important thing for any hero is a sense of humor and fun. A strong male who is confident in himself and actions is attractive, but the addition of a sense of humor really takes him into sexy for me. Of course, I’m also a sucker for tall and dark. Just about all the heroes I write are tall with dark hair.

What drives your books? Is it the hero, the heroine, the conflict?

When I first started writing, my stories were normally plot driven, but these days I tend to write more character driven books. I’m happy driving along (as a writer or reader) in either vehicle. Mostly, I think, it depends on the story idea that comes to me.

What is your favorite thing about being a writer and/or your favorite writing memory?

I’m a fairly organized person and quite driven. I love being a writer and working for myself. Ultimately, the buck stops with me and I’m the one responsible for my success or failure. I like that. It used to drive me crazy having to rely on other people or worse, having to fix their mess-ups in my day job. I much prefer being my own boss. I also like the fact I can write anywhere and the only limit is my imagination. That’s a heady thing.

Who was the last author whose writing wowed you?

I read a lot because I think it’s an important way to keep up with trends. And reading always stimulates my imagination. I think reading other author’s books is a way to learn and I treat many of them like textbooks. I have three authors who have wowed me lately.

E-published Cameron Dane writes mainly m/m romance. Her books are rockin’ hot and the characters really jumped from the pages. I read the first book in her series and immediately went looking for the others.

Robyn Carr, who writes contemporary romance, has a series called Virgin River. She hooked me with the first book in the series. Her characterization is just amazing. I might not always agree with the plotlines but her characters grab me by the throat each and every time I read one of her books.

The final author who always wows me is Larissa Ione with her Demonica series. Truly awesome plotting, excellent world-building, and once again, characters who jump off the page. Larissa really torments her characters and I love that in a writer. Yeah, I want to be just like Larissa when I grow up.

What’s next for you/what are you working on now?

At the end of June, I have a paranormal m/m called Seeking Kokopelli coming out at Samhain Publishing. My hero Adam is Kokopelli and he has quite a time finding love and coming to terms with the woo-woo factor in his life. There’s love, danger and a touch of the mystical in Seeking Kokopelli.

Meantime, I’m working on a follow-up story for Julia, one of Maggie’s friends in The Bottom Line.

Thanks for having me to visit today, Vivi!

Thank you for visiting, Shelley! Today one lucky commenter wins an e-copy of one of Shelley's Ellora's Cave backlist titles. Also, if you visit her blog, you can enter her How Many Books contest, running now. Good luck, everyone, and happy Wednesday!