Guest Spot and a CONTEST!

Today, I am so pleased to welcome L.K. Below as a guest.

L.K. what got you started in erotic romance?

When I began writing, I focused on science fiction and fantasy. My tastes, at that point, mirrored my father's tastes in books. But in high school, my best friend and biggest supporter read romance. She kept encouraging me to develop the romance between my characters -- and slipping me Sherrilyn Kenyon/Kinley MacGregor books. Eventually, I decided to give it a shot. My last year of high school was spent scribbling paranormal romance novels in the back of class (horrible ones, I assure you, which will never see the light of day).

The more I wrote, the more characters clamored to have their own romances told. As for the erotic bit, the level of sensuality depends on the characters. I can't make them do things against their will or the writing will be stiff. I always listen intently to the story the characters want to have told. I just complicate their lives a bit by throwing them into sticky situations. :)

What genres do you write and what do you like about erom compared to the others?

I write in many other genres. Fantasy and science fiction were my first loves, and I continue to write them. Under my full name, Lindsay Below, I also write young adult novels.

Erotic romance has something different than all these other genres. The happily-ever-after at the end always beckons but I find writing erotic romance to be much more potent. In erotic romance, the thoughts and feelings of the hero/ine are bubbling just under the surface. I'm easily able to get under my characters' skin and shake things up a bit. Plus, yes, I am a happily-ever-after junkie. Even the antagonists in some books get their own romances later on. I love the journey and the connection between two people. Through writing romance -- as with reading it -- I'm able to experience that same euphoria of falling in love, over and over again.

What is your favorite relationship from one of your books? Tell us about it.

My favorite relationship is actually glimpsed briefly in Never a Princess, Always a Frog, my latest release from Lyrical Press, Inc. The side characters in a book often hold my interest as much as my main couple. They hold the promise of something to come. And let me tell you, in Never a Princess, there is definitely a promise of more. Hannah is my heroine's best friend -- Rob is my hero's best friend. Hannah and Rob have history and chemistry, so much that I know I'll have to revisit them in a future book. They really need to work things out. Sometimes goodbye just isn't the end -- as is the case for this couple. I can't wait for their book, though my heroine's plus-sized cousin snuck her way in and demanded a book of her own first.

How do you manage your productivity? Do you write a set amount of words per day?

Managing writing with the other aspects of my writing career -- promoting, maintaining a virtual presence, even going through edits -- is a balance I'm still trying to work out. Setting outrageous goals I find helps to maximize my productivity. I may not always meet them, but I always get stuff done. Someday soon I hope to right my footing, so to speak, and learn how to walk the tight wire between not enough and too much.

I also write an ungodly amount of to-do lists, but that's just for fun. :)

LOL, I can relate. I love me some to-do lists!

If you could be anywhere in the world, where is your dream writing space? Why?

I don't know if I have a dream writing space. I need to be somewhere quiet and uninterrupted in order to write. But if I'm dreaming, I'd also like to visit the world and conduct first-hand research for my books. Maybe in a boat, sailing around the world? I've never been on a ship. My luck, I'd turn out to be seasick. :P

Your new series is a contemporary retelling of classic fairy tales. Have you always been a fan of fairy tales? What do you think is their lasting appeal?

Fairy tales are literal happy-ever-afters. As a romance author, I love that aspect of them. But I like to go right to the source and research the original tales (or as close to the original tales as I can get, the tales written by men such as the Brothers Grimm). These tales are little pieces of history. I love that. The magical tales told fascinate me and never fail to get my creative juices flowing.

My new series combines the magical feeling of those tales with the present. There are no fairy godmothers or pumpkins-turned-carriages. Instead, normal women meet the men of their dreams and fall in love -- but each story has a fairy tale overtone. In Never a Princess, Always a Frog, that tone is "The Princess and the Frog." Instead of princess-kisses-frog-who-turns-into-prince, I have gawky-librarian-dresses-in-green-paint-and-meets-"prince"-at-Halloween-party. The next book in the series, Beauty in His Bed, uses "Sleeping Beauty" as the backdrop for the story. I'm having a lot of fun finding just the right tale for each of my heroines.

Never a Princess, Always a Frog

Has this frog finally found her prince?

From the moment Colleen confesses her deepest desire -- to experience the same passion she’s read about in books -- she is swept away on the most daring escapade she’s ever experienced. Dressed in nothing but green paint,she attends a Halloween party searching for the man of her dreams. She finds him, but then fears she won’t be able to give him up.

Since the death of his wife five years ago, Dan’s life has been on auto-pilot. But from the moment he meets Colleen, he starts to feel alive again. And he knows he can’t let this would-be princess stride out of his life…

Buy the book or learn more at http://bit.ly/NeverAPrincess.

Want to win this book? Be sure to visit L.K. Below's blog for her Week-After-Release Party on Monday, July 11th 2011. One lucky commenter will win this book!

Visit http://lbelow.blogspot.com and leave a comment on her party post on Monday to enter.

L.K. Below writes romance and speculative fiction. Under her full name, Lindsay Below, she pens young adult novels. Visit her online at www.lbelow.net.