1. Tell me the genesis of your novel. When and why did the idea pop into your head? How long did it take to write?
The idea for The Matchmakers came to me more or less as a single scene. I had a picture in my head of a rugged, very macho guy being scolded by a faerie. I liked the idea of having a no-nonsense hero who is forced to change his entire perspective and deal with someone he’s not even sure is real. The idea evolved as I got to know Nick Garrett and he become a more complex character, but the basic premise really sprang from that one image I had in my head. I would say it took about four months to write the book and went through several rounds even before I began to submit it to publishers.
2. Was this your first novel? Your tenth?
This was…I believe my third full-length novel written. It ended up being my 35th published title.
3. Why did you choose to epublish this book? Is it also available in print?
I chose to e-publish for a couple of reasons. One, this is a lighter romance and I’d been told so often that traditional print pubs these days are looking for dark paranormals, the darker the better. I like dark too, but The Matchmakers is pure fun. After hearing ‘make it darker’ over and over again, I decided I needed to go with a publisher who would be happy to have a light, entertaining read. I chose Samhain because I knew I would get fantastic editorial input and the finished product would be something special. The Matchmakers will be available in print in April of 2010.
4. Do you write full time? If not, what is your other job. How do you manage to do both?
Currently I don’t write full time. I did for three years, which allowed me to create my backlist and have a few manuscripts in reserve. Right now I work part-time for a CPA, part time for a local town hall and part-time as a free-lance editor in addition to writing. I’m not really sure how I manage to do it all…basically if I’m awake, I’m working, but I enjoy my various jobs, so I don’t usually have time to notice that I don’t have any free time. LOL.
5. Are you working on a new project? Can you tell us about it?
I am working on a novella at the moment. I don’t want to give too much away, but my alter ego, Bernadette Gardner, has taken over my brain and is hard at work on a steamy science-fiction romance.
6. Anything else you'd like to say?
One thing I’d like to tell aspiring authors is not to give up on a manuscript you believe in. As I mentioned above, The Matchmakers started out around number 3 in my line-up of work and didn’t hit publication until I’d sold over 30 other titles. In between, it spent a lot of time in a drawer and a lot of time on my desk being torn apart and tinkered with. I could have given up on it a lot of times, especially after each rejection I received, but just couldn’t bring myself to hide it under the bed [with the manuscripts I actually have given up on – and there are a few.] This one was special to me and I was determined to get it out there for other people to enjoy it. The story that finally made it to print was somewhat different from the original version thanks to all the wonderful help I received along the way, but ultimately I got to see a story that really mattered to me published, so it was well worth all the time and work involved.
You can purchase a copy of The Matchmakers here.
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