This month, I was given the opportunity to chat with a very talented author, who was willing to give us some of her valuable time to answer a few questions.  So, let’s hear from

Kate Pearce

Did you always want to be a writer and when did you seriously begin writing?
I always had an overactive imagination and made stuff up, so I suppose the desire was always there! I seriously decided to write a whole book in about 2000, not long after we moved to the USA.

Do you still have a “real life” job or are you able to focus solely on your writing?
I have 4 kids between the ages of 5 and 18, one of whom has some disabilities so I’ve basically been busy with the career of motherhood for quite a long time! I hated real work. I ended up in finance and taxes and I can’t add up!

I read you were born and raised in England, do you miss it?
I miss my family and the history, but the weather? Nope!

Tell us about what makes Kate…Kate.
That’s a hard one to answer-I think I’m basically an easy-going irritating dreamer who would rather read a book or write one than do anything else. I try to be a good wife, mother and friend but apparently I do have a habit of drifting off into the land of the fairies…

I read that you write under several names. Do you find it difficult to find a balance between them?
I only write under 2 names. One for my sweet stuff, of which there is very little published and Kate Pearce for the more, erm ‘interesting’ stuff.

Where do your story ideas come from?
No idea. I just catch them drifting through my mind and run them down.

You write in several different genres, do you have a favorite and why?  Do you have a genre you would like to try?
The Regency period is my favorite. My voice is at its strongest and I just ‘love’ to write those books. I’d probably like to try a straight historical novel one day!

Tell us some of your favorites: foods, music, movies, books, authors, seasons, and any others you would like to share.
I love Chinese, Indian and Italian food, particularly sea food. I’m not a great movie goer but I’ll watch anything with Colin Firth, Hugh Grant or Russell Crowe in it.  I’m a voracious reader. Some of my favorites are Linda Howard, Dorothy Dunnett, Ian McEwan, Jane Austen, Suzanne Brockmann, J R Ward and Mary Balogh. I also love to ride and snuggle up with my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Hunter. 

If you could travel to any time or place in time, where would it be and why?
Definitely back to the Regency period-as long as I was one of the super rich! Probably about the time of the battle of Waterloo. I feel I belong in that time period somehow J

What was the best piece of advice you received when starting out?  Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Best piece of advice was to write a little every day. I also had a great writing teacher who helped me hone the art of writing a short story, that taught me how to write tight and make every word count. So I’d pass that on!

Do you enjoy hearing from your readers and what is the best way to contact you?
I love hearing from readers. You can contact me through  contactme@katepearce.com

How does the writing process work for you? Are you a planner or do you write as it comes?
I’m a pantster. I write very little down-maybe a page about two thirds of the way through the book so that I can see where I’m going. I know, not a good example and it makes writing proposals very tricky! But I love finding out about my characters as I write the book and how they surprise me.

What does a typical day in Kate’s life look like?
I get up around 6:30 and start shuttling children to school or college, (although my eldest is learning to drive so I’m hoping things will get better). I check email, message boards and promo in the morning, Pick up my daughter from kindergarten and have lunch with her, then we basically do our own thing for a couple of hours-well I write and she does girly stuff and pops in every 5 minutes to tell me about it! (Obviously, I’m supposed to be writing at this time but we kind of work it out.) Then we pick up the boys,(all teenagers) make sure they do their homework, feed them huge quantities of food and then Mr. Kate and I watch a little TV before falling into bed at 10:30.

Are your family and friends your biggest fans?  Do they read your work?
I have 5 sisters. Four of them read my books, two of them are very supportive. The other one finds the whole idea of me writing erotic romance offensive. My mother is equally horrified and keeps asking me to write a ‘good’ book and bemoaning the waste of my college education. My husband is a little startled by my choice of subject matter but he’s supported me both financially and emotionally since 2000 and I appreciate that greatly. Of course my kids, being mainly teenage boys are supportive but horrified that their mother knows anything about sex J

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?
I’d love to tell you about two new books coming out early next year! The first, “Simply Sexual” is from Kensington ‘Aphrodisia’ and is Regency-set erotic romance-very edgy and a bit dark, about 2 men who were slaves in a Turkish brothel for several years before returning to England. The second, “Roping the Wind” which comes out in Feb, is contemporary erotic romance from Virgin ‘Cheek’ about a washed up cowboy, his orthopedic surgeon and their shared fascination for hot sex and leather.

Details can be found on my website  www.katepearce.com

I’d also like to thank you for having me!