Background: I grew up on a three hundred acre farm in the heart of God�s country, which means when we moved out there the phone lines ended a half mile away, on each side of our property. I�m only 34, so it wasn�t that long ago. I�d never seen a dirt road before (lived in Cincinnati til I was five). Way out, down the kind of winding, miles-long, one-lane dirt road that makes the infrequent guests I�ve taken out there clutch their chest and gasp, "What happens if a car comes towards us?" "Swerve and pray", I tell �em. And add a plea that it�s not a member of my own family coming towards us because they drive like they own the road.

I attribute my imagination to the intense solitude of growing up in such an isolated environment; the nearest neighbor was miles away. A debate with cows or geese, while flattering to the ego, lost its thrall after a while, and if my parents saw me they put me to work. Definitely cause to avoid the homestead. We raised tobacco, and yes, I hoed it, staked it, stripped it and plucked the nasty green worms off it. Standing in the middle of an endless field of plants that are only going to grow bigger and make more work for you (talk about an incentive to mutilate a few of those defenseless green sprouts), with a hoe in 100 degree weather would have been intolerable if not for the Vikings (insert here any hunky man) hoeing along side me. Oh, a mirage? A figment of intense heat, sweat, and extreme ennui? I�ll buy that, but it passed the time. And now they saunter, sweaty and muscle-bound, into their own stories as if we�re old friends.

I attended an all-girls school. (The Immaculate Conception Academy was printed all over our uniforms until some of us removed the word �Immaculate.� They changed the uniforms after that.) I was expelled. Went to Purdue and majored in Society and Law, then moved back to Cincinnati where I�ve worked in insurance for the past ten years.

Aislinn: Our RBL members read romance for relaxation and escape. What do you do?

Karen: How do I relax? I think I�m afraid to. I work full-time for a law firm in Illinois, out of my home via modem. I handle marketing and commercial cases. In the evening and on weekends, I try to get in all my research and writing time. Under deadline it gets tense. If I let myself lose momentum (ask Julia London about this, who also works full-time in addition to writing fabulous books!), I might just lay down, decide to be a sloth, and eat chocolates all day. What an enticing idea. I guess I do what you ladies do to take a breather; I grab a romance that will take me into another world where I don�t have to think about deadlines or booking flights or marketing.

Books I enjoy reading: Anne Rice�s THE WITCHING HOUR and RAMSEY THE DAMNED, which was a romance through and through, Katherine Neville�s THE EIGHT, good sci-fi (i.e., Frank Herbert, Heinlein, Douglas Adams and some Harlan Ellison) Mind-benders like Jorge Luis Borges, and the occasional morose Neitzsche. I love to read in general, so I tend to run the gamut. Our tastes are similar; all the HUGHIES are favorites of mine, Virginia Henley is a long-time favorite, and SEP�s books are phenomenal.

Aislinn: You mentioned in your biography that writing was your first love. When did you realize that writing was your dream? What appealed to you about the romance genre as your choice for your novel?

Karen: When I was younger, although I wanted to tell stories, I didn�t feel I had sufficient life-experience to write, as if there was some depth as a person I hadn�t yet developed that adds critical texture and richness (damaged people are more interesting, their stories are too). A significant occasion precipitated my decision to try to get published. I had a vivid dream that I died, one of those dreams that lingers and won�t let go all day. As I was dying this huge voice echoed through my head and said, "Who the hell lived the last ten years of your life, because you sure didn�t." It still gives me chills. I quit the suffocating day-job less than two weeks later and harnessed my scattered resources. I hung a quote above my desk that is still there: When you chase a dream the universe conspires to help you get it. I remember feeling incredibly driven, like a floodgate had opened. I worked odd-jobs for the next year and wrote as much as I could.

Why romance? To me, it�s the pulse of life. It�s what it�s all about, and the world could use a whole lot more of it. I�ve seen more romance in a farmer�s soul - the man who takes the time to sit down and watch the setting sun turn a field of wheat crimson - than in the stiff white shirts I�ve worked with. And it�s the stiff whites who get so darned uncomfortable with what I write. Go figure. A man once told me that life was all about sex. That everything we did came down to sex. The clothes we choose to wear, the job, the car, every minute of every day. Before telling him to get lost, I told him I almost agreed, he was close. It�s all about relationships, love, and interacting. We are a gregarious race, sex is part of it; maybe the wheat (you need it, it�s a staple), but romance is the sun setting on it. Makes the world a more beautiful place.

Aislinn: Your first book, BEYOND THE HIGHLAND MIST, is a time-travel. Did this make writing your first book easier or more difficult? Will your books continue to be time-travel or would you consider doing a historical or contemporary?

Karen: I don�t know if the paranormal element affected it either way; it was a story I needed to tell, and it happened to be a time-travel. My future books will continue to be paranormal in some capacity. My second novel doesn�t involve time-travel, but is based on an old Viking legend. The hero is - er - not quite human. My third novel will ddeal with another ancient legend, and is currently scheduled to be the story of Hawk�s brother, Adrian.

I read Marsha Canham�s interview and five seems to be the magic number. I wrote four books before BEYOND THE HIGHLAND MIST, suffered my share of rejections, and kept striving. By the fifth novel, crafting it became a little clearer. Writing, like any other profession, is a constant learning process. I think, with each completed novel, a writer becomes more attuned to his or her unique �voice,� and once you start hearing it, everything about your writing improves. The words flow more easily, sentence structure gets cleaner. As to a �straight� historical or a contemporary, yes, someday I�d like to do both, but I know I still have a great deal to learn as a writer before tackling a new challenge. I�m really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on BTHM at the book discussion. Thanks for choosing me!

Aislinn: Why did you decide to use medieval Scotland? Do you do your own research?

Karen: Why Scotland? I don�t know. I�m drawn to it. I also find Regency England fascinating. I do my own research, but - and please don�t shoot me - I take a bit of poetic license when research material yields no definite consensus. I�ve researched some things (like the origination of clan colors for example) and found two distinct camps (old as Noah�s ark v. the origin in Victorian times). I can produce facts to support both positions, but I cannot prove one over the other. Usually, when confronted with such disparity, I opt for something in the middle - which inevitably elicits criticism from both camps. (Maybe I should stop doing that, huh?) Scotland will continue to be the background until my publisher tells me I have to stop, which hopefully won�t happen.

Aislinn: Karen, there is a lot of magic and superstition in BTHM; what inspired your use of the fairy court and gypsy rituals? Do you believe in magic yourself?

Karen: I�ve always been fascinated by ancient tales and legends, by the way people viewed the world thousands of years ago, predating scientific knowledge. I�d like to find a common consensus on where the Tuatha de Danaan came from - out of the mists, the mists of what? They were too advanced for the time and they �disappeared beneath the hills.� Those few sentences were inspiration for BTHM. The legend of Brunhilde and Sigmund are the inspiration for my third novel. I�m a hopeless dreamer - yes, I believe in magic.

Aislinn: The main characters of your book, Hawk and Adrienne, are complex (both with a story inside a story). Was this your original concept for the characters, or did they evolve in the writing?

Karen: Back to the texture and richness thing: I think our life experience and quirks make us interesting. I don�t know if I will always be able to write a virgin heroine for that very reason. My original concept for the characters was to write �damaged� people, but they evolved a bit along the way. Adrienne and Hawk were two people who�d given up on love, who�d resigned themselves to the probability that they would never have an intimate relationship. I enjoyed proving them wrong. They were perfect for each other.

Aislinn: Your secondary character, Grimm, will have his own book in TO TAME A HIGHLAND WARRIOR. Did you intend this to be his story rather than a continuation of BTHM?

Karen: Yes. Grimm was dying to tell me his problem all through BTHM. Every time I�d write a scene with him in it, he�d fold his arms across his chest, tap his foot, and look at me like, Eenough already, lets get to the good stuff, let�s talk about ME. I have a real problem." And when he finally brought the cradle into the Peacock Room in the last scene, the come-hither look in his ice-blue eyes was beyond my ability to resist.

Aislinn: Many authors use a signature idiosyncrasy in their writing, like the titles of their other books in the text or names of actual people they know for characters. I noticed you used your cat in BTHM. Is this going to be a personal signature in your stories?

Karen: Nope. I�d like to, but I�ll settle for getting a picture of her in the back with me. Allow me to rephrase that accurately - she�ll keep me if I get the right picture in the back of my book. (Okay, I admit, I am immortalizing every one of my pets in my books. In TTAHW, it�s Savannah TeaGarden, the wolfhound, who is a real 140 pound wolfhound who�s growing old on me, and I can�t bear to lose her.)

Aislinn: Karen, since you told me your homepage isn�t set up yet, could you tell us if you�ll be attending any upcoming conventions? Are there any plans or timetables in the works for current or future book signings for you?

Karen:A web page will be up soon. It�s being worked on. I may be going to RWA in Chicago. I am definitely attending RT in Toronto, and several Ohio romance conventions. I have two more local book signings scheduled. I understand some of the RBL ladies may be attending RWA and/or RT, and I look forward to meeting you there!

Aislinn, may I shamelessly plug TTAHW a little more? My editor just sent me a great blurb: "TO TAME A HIGHLAND WARRIOR features Grimm Roderick, the last in a long line of Berserkers - legendary warriors of supernatural strength who are hunted by rival clans and feared as much as they are revered throughout Scotland. Tormented by the dark fate of his ancestors, Grimm vows never to acknowledge his passion for Jillian St. Clair, the only woman who can tame his savage heart and teach him the pleasure of love."

Thanks for creating such a great place for romance lovers to meet and chat! You guys are wonderful! And keep the bodacious bods coming.

           


Donna: Karen, please tell us what is new with you. Are you still working full time for the law firm? How are you making out with your quest to really �live� your life?

Karen Marie: I�ve been a full-time writer for awhile, still have no life. What�s new? Well, I moved again but that�s going to be old news soon because I�m moving again, so I guess that doesn�t really count. I lead a boring life. I�m looking into universities right now, going to go back to school in �04. That�s pretty much it.

Donna: You gave us an interview right after your first book, BEYOND THE HIGHLAND MIST. Since then you have given us four other incredibly sexy adventures (and we Rebels have raved over each one). Do you still plan to follow a paranormal theme in future books?

Karen Marie: Aw, thanks, you RBL�s are the best! I believe my books will always have something of the paranormal in them. Sci-fi/fantasy was my first love, romance second. For me, the combination of the two - a little bit of extraordinary set amidst the ordinary - is the perfect read.

Donna: You have received some awards since our last interview. Care to brag a bit?

Karen Marie: I was stunned and amazed by DARK HIGHLANDER's HUGHIE awards, and thank you! As for any others, I treasure each one but figure it this way: I don�t want to know what awards Linda Howard has won. I just want her next book right now. In fact, I�d prefer she bypass interviewing and accepting awards entirely and please just write faster. *G*

Donna: During our last interview, you said that your third book was scheduled to be the story of Hawk�s brother, Adrian. Do you still plan to write his story?

Karen Marie: That seems so long ago! I'd turned in a plot synopsis for Adrian�s story but it was rejected - then TTAHW came next. I still have Adrian�s synopsis, and I still like that synopsis. It was rejected for being more complex than my editor thought I should be tackling at the time, so I very well may return to it and tell Adrian�s story. I never say never. Ditto a possibility with Quinn, Duncan Douglas, and even the older couple in TTAHW, Kaley and Balder. I also have ideas for more MacKeltar.

Donna: You told us of how Grimm pestered you to write his story. Any other characters waiting patiently (or impatiently) for their own stories?

Karen Marie: Ooops, answered part of this above.

Adam. Drove. Me. Nuts. Yes, my teeth are gritted. I had no intention of telling his story next. And I swear I am not going to try to tackle Darroc (from THE IMMORTAL HIGHLANDER). No way in hell. One dark Fae is enough. Nope, absolutely no other characters hounding me. Really.

Donna: We are delighted to see that Adam Black is finally going to get his own story (or his "comeuppance" *g*). He was so bad in BTHM, yet so intriguing. Can you give us some hints about his story?

Karen Marie: Check my new Web site (the link is below) and watch it over the next month or so, because it will be loaded as it comes together, including teasers and excerpts and news about some reissues of my earlier books (with new covers, so be warned - REISSUES, not new stuff!) that will be on sale in �04 for $3.99 each.

Here�s a teeny bit of the cover blurb for THE IMMORTAL HIGHLANDER - won�t bore you with it all (note - the heroine is a Sidhe-seer - pronounced shee-seer - one of those humans that can see the Fae and their hidden realms):

BEWARE: lethally seductive alpha male of immense strength and dark eroticism, do not look at him. Do not touch him. Do not be tempted. Do not be seduced ...

With his long, black hair and dark, mesmerizing eyes, Adam Black is Trouble with a capital T. Immortal, arrogant and intensely sensual, he is the consummate seducer, free to roam across time and continents in pursuit of his insatiable desires. That is, until a curse strips him of his immortality and makes him invisible; a cruel fate for so seductive a man. With his very life at stake, Adam�s only hope for survival is in the hands of the one woman who can actually see him ...

And I suppose I may as well bite the bullet and clear this up here: THE IMMORTAL HIGHLANDER is my Delacorte hardcover debut. Many of you have e-mailed me to ask what the deal is over at Amazon, with both a hardcover and a paperback listed. Amazon�s listing on the paperback is incorrect. The hardcover goes on sale August 3, 2004; the paperback will not be out until 2005. I am not comfortable with this but the decision was not mine. A small consolation is that the price is a bargain hardcover price. I apologize for this increase in price - I would have cheerfully avoided the pressures of being moved into hardcover had it been my call. But it wasn�t.

Donna: What is next after Adam�s story?

Karen Marie: Not sure, still germinating. I should know within a month or so. I have an alternate world I�ve been wanting to build for awhile and it�s beginning to feel like it might be time.

Donna: Thank you so much for the wonderful books you have written. You have found a place in our hearts and in our Rebel circle. Here�s to a long and prolific future!

Karen Marie: Thank you! You ladies were there from day one when my first book came out, with so much wonderful love and support (not to mention the most bodacious bods on the Web). RBL is an AMAZING place, full of simply AMAZING women. Thank you all for making it a place that so many can come to and feel at home, where women from all walks of life and all parts of the world can share not just their love of reading and romance, but their trials, tribulations and triumphs. RBL ROCKS!

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