Monday, October 17, 2011

Daisy Harris is here with Studenstein!

Daisy Harris




The fantabulous Daisy Harris is here today to talk about her book, Studenstein. Now I don't know about you, but the title alone nabbed me. I can't wait to read this book. Now, want something just as cool? A GC to BN.com, maybe? Comment and comment often! The more you comment, the better your chances. But we're here to talk about Miss Daisy, so let's get this party started!!!

Hi Daisy! I couldn't wait for your stop! What was your favorite scene to write in Studenstein?

Without a doubt, the funnest scene to write was the pegging. I had to do research, and a lot of imagining. The scene was sexual, but was really about the forming connection between the hero and heroine. In the end, the act itself wasn’t the focal point, but instead the transformation in the heroine and how she feels about the hero.
Plus, pegging! How fun is that?

Isn't it fun to play with the roles in a relationship to see what happens? What was the inspiration behind Studenstein?

I love the idea of “the perfect man.” I also adore male-prostitute stories, especially when the male in question sort of likes being a prostitute. Bones, from Jeanniene Frost’s Night Huntress series was one of my favorite heroes ever, and my entrĂ©e into the world of slutty men.

Yes! How cool. What is the most interesting thing you’ve done in the name of research?

Well, in Mere Passion, my hero and heroine had sex on a snowmobile. This made sense for the story, as it was set in the Arctic. However, I’ve never been on a snowmobile and had a hard time imagining the positioning. So I went out to the front of our house and experimented with our Yamaha Vino scooter. I lay across it a few different ways, trying to imagine a much larger vehicle.

Then I asked fellow author Camryn Rhys to read the scene for me. She’s from the frozen north and had lots to say about sex in the snow.

Hey, whatever works. Plus I'm sure it sparked the imagination. What do you consider as the most frustrating side of becoming a published author and what has been the most rewarding?

The hardest part of being published is the marketing. There’s so much more involved in promoting one’s books than I ever could have imagined! That’s why folks like you are so great for hosting guest-bloggers. It can be hard to get the word out.

The most rewarding part is fan mail. OMG, there’s nothing better than receiving an email from a happy reader!

Yes! I love to host other authors and plus, I love fan mail. Let's get to something naughty but fun. What accent inspires you to do naughty things?

Huh, I’m not a huge accent girl. Oh, but Aiden Turner, the Irish actor from Being Human, has the best voice on the planet! He’s my current not-so-secret crush.

My man obsession is Eric Szmanda on CSI. I get you. Name something readers would be surprised to learn about you?
Ooh, that’s a toughie! I’m pretty sure no one can be shocked by anything I do anymore. LOL.

Well, it might surprise folks that the first romance novel I ever read was Twilight. (That’s not counting Clan of the Cave Bear and Flowers in the Attic as a kid.) I started reading YA, urban fantasy, and then paranormal romance in 2008. Then I started writing romance in 2010.

I have to laugh. I thought I couldn't shock anyone and then I met the girls at the Menagerie. I'm finding I can still shock once in a while. If you could ask the readers one question what would it be?

“What’s your favorite book?”

What’s your writing process like?

I brainstorm first—handwriting pages and pages of notes. Then I do a quick-and-dirty outline of one sentence per scene. I write between 1000 and 5000 words per day until I have a draft, then do revisions. My revision process is extremely involved! I do multiple read-throughs, create notecards for each scene, cut, paste, cut some more. I’m more of a re-writer than a writer. No one in their right mind would ever want to read one of my first drafts!

But you know what's what so that's all that matters. Grin. What can readers expect next from you?

Currently I’m revising the next book in my Love-Bots series, tentatively named Built 4 It. It’s a male-male stein story and set in a lab. After that, I’ll probably write at least one more Love-Bot novella, possibly as many as three more.

After that? Hm. I have a vampire story set in East Hampton, NY running around in my brain. But I don’t know if I’ll actually write it. Then there’s a vampire orthodontist tale… Maybe a gay vampire orthodontist in East Hampton? We’ll have to see.

Can't say you don't have lots of ideas! What is the best thing about being a writer? The worst?

The best thing is losing yourself in a story. There’s nothing, absolutely nothing in the world as awesome as getting lost in telling a tale.

The worst thing? I guess the promotional part. I’d rather write, write, write turning out great books that make people smile.

I hear you. I'd love to be able to write and have someone else promo, but that requires lots of cash I don't have on hand. Speaking of writing, what is your method of breaking through writer’s block?

I don’t really get writer’s block, per se. Sometimes I get worn out, though. I have a tigger-esque personality where I think, think, think and then WRITE like I’m spring-loaded. I routinely over-work myself and then collapse in a heap. But I’ve learned to respect the process. Usually a nap and a couple days of reading re-fuels my creativity and I’m ready to WRITE like a fiend again.

Cool. I follow the muses (i have a male and a female muse...long story) and I let them run. What fuels you as an author to continue to write?

The desire to make money? LOL. Truth is, I was a technical writer for years before I ever started writing fiction. So I’m accustomed to turning out words every day. I don’t know what I would do with myself if I didn’t write most days. Sometimes I have nightmares about my nails getting too long so I can’t write! I wake up in a cold sweat.

LOL! Can you tell us a bit about what book(s) you have coming out next and what you’re working on now?

After Studenstein, my next book will be Built 4 It. I’m pretty sure the next one after that will be One Night Steined—a story I originally wrote as a subplot in Love-Bots 1: Lust After Death. But after that? Lord if I know! Maybe the East Hampton Vampires?

I’m not much of a planner. As it is, I generally write one book at a time, and never plan more than a couple ahead. Maybe when I become famous I’ll have a longer lead-time on my production schedule. But for now, the thought of planning scares me!

I'm always worried if I pitch something that's not done, either it will be accepted and I won't be able to pull off what I pitched or I won't be able to meet the deadline. I hate/love deadlines. When you get a chance to read, what books do you love to read?

Paranormal! My favorite stories are paranormal and scifi erotic romances with a straightforward conflict and a well-drawn theme. Lately, I love the works of Charlotte Stein. Oh, and I love novellas because I can zing through them in a night before bed.

What bores you as a reader?

Werewolves. I’ve never really understood the whole furry-shifter thing. Kresley Cole wrote the only werewolves that I’ve really liked to date. Oh, and series that go on for too long. I like series that run from 3-5 books. After that they tend to feel “stale” to me.

Food for thought. What is your favorite feature on a person?

Eyes! I’m a fool for big, brown eyes.

What is your favorite time of day?

Late afternoon/early evening. I get my best writing done then.

Me, too. What music gets you dancing?

80’s hip-hip. I’m a sucker for Salt n Pepa, Beastie Boys, Run DMC. I like Flo Rida and Pit Bull, but otherwise that’s about it for “new” music.

I like me some Beastie Boys on occasion. Now for a far out question. Aliens have landed on the planet. What are the three things you would tell them that are great about this planet?

Ethiopian food, rap music, Wikipedia

You have been locked in a mall and told you can get anything you want and when they open in the morning you won’t have to pay a single cent. What stores would you hit? Better question how would you haul away all your loot?

Oh man, I’m easily overwhelmed by too many choices. And my house is tiny! We literally don’t have a single closet. So I’m very careful about what I buy. I suppose I’d see if they had a Barney’s or Tiffany’s. Then I’d find the 5-10 most expensive things I could find that I actually liked. I’d take them home in my Chevy Aveo.

Hee hee. That would be funny to see your car packed with stuff. You wouldn't have room for you! If you could share one major writing tip, to help other writers in their quest for publication, what would it be?

Take Holly Lisle’s How To Revise Your Novel course! I love this course, and use the notes every single time I set out to revise a story. The very first novella I ever wrote got contracted because of this class.

If you could write in any other genre what would it be, and why?

Hm. I could see shifting to sci-fi from paranormal, but otherwise I imagine I’ll stay where I am—writing sexy, romantic paranormal novellas. Sure, I hope someday to write something that transcends the genre. But if I do, I imagine it’ll be along the lines of Tom Robbins—quirky, sexy fun.


All you want to know, vitalstats-wise on Miss Daisy Harris:
Birkenstock-wearing glamour girl and mother of two by immaculate conception, Daisy Harris still isn’t sure if she writes erotica. Her paranormal romances start out innocently enough. However, her characters behave like complete sluts. Much to Miss Harris’s dismay, the sex tends to get completely out of hand.

If you like science-y subplots, fantastical creatures, and red-hot chemistry, you’ll love Daisy Harris.

website: www.thedaisyharris.com
twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/thedaisyharris
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Daisy-Harris-Erotic-Paranormal-Romance/185042351535537


Studenstein (Book two in the Love-Bots series)
Here's the blurb:A man built for sex… A woman who wants more…

Freedom fighter Shani Brown is determined to drag the ungrateful Royce back to her team in Seattle. Despite his denial of mistreatment, she wants to give him a chance at a better life. Due to her horrific past as an unlicensed love-bot, Shani never plans to have sex again. But Royce’s makers punish him remotely with crippling pain. His only escape is to orgasm. Never one to turn her back on a job, Shani soon finds herself servicing him—and soon after, caring for him.

Love-bot Royce Harden wasn’t looking to be rescued, especially not from the San Francisco BDSM club where he was having a perfectly good time. But rescued he was—by a hellcat bent on delivering him to her people. As Royce starts to trust Shani, he begins to dream of freedom. But freedom comes with a price. Royce must face his vanity, his makers, and even the loss of his sexual upgrades if he’s going to be the man Shani deserves.

And an excerpt for fun!!

Shaniqua! You stop thinking about that boy’s butt right this second! Shani didn’t know where that voice in her head came from, since she’d never had a mother in her undead life. But yeah, that voice in her head, her “superego” Frank called it, always called her by her full name.

So as she led Royce around the outside of the building, Shani focused on the quiet ticks of birds, the rustle of leaves, anything to take her mind of those little dimples that had shown right below his hipbones, or his deep and intriguing groan. As they walked, Shani calculated their distance from the van. Q-ter’s transmitter would only block Royce’s signal within one city block. The bathrooms weren’t all that far away, but Shani wasn’t accustomed to greenery and open space. Without urban landmarks, she didn’t trust her sense of distance.

His biceps flexed under her grip—not pulling away, but maybe trying to warn her he could. Shani’d touched Royce more in the past few hours than she’d touched any man since her captivity. She wanted to think it was because the assignment demanded she lead him about—gripping his firm upper arm—in case he tried to escape, but that voice in her head knew better.

Shaniqua! Let go of the boy-toy! In the dark, his skin felt warm and hard in her hand. It was a relief when she blinked in the bright halogen lights of the ladies’ room. No matter how pretty or tempting Royce Harden might be, Shani would never be able to stomach having sex again. And almost but not doing would be worse than never having tried at all.

8 comments:

booklover0226 said...

This was a great post; I found it quite interesting and informative.

I look forward in starting the Love-Bots series.

Thanks,
Tracey D
booklover0226 at gmail dot com

Wendi Zwaduk and Megan Slayer said...

Hi Daisy! Glad you could be here today! Yeah, it looks like a fantastic book!

Cathy M said...

Hi Wendi and Daisy,

Great interview. I love your storytelling, Daisy, and am already hooked on your love-bots.

Going to go take a peek at Charlotte Stein's stories today too.

caity_mack at yahoo dot com

Anonymous said...

Hiya Tracey! Nice to see you again. :)

Wendi- Thanks for having me on the blog!

Cathy- Thanks for stopping by! Glad to hear your enjoying the series!

Eva's Flowers said...

Great interview, I certainly appreciate reading how you go about creating your characters and just writing in general. Thanks for sharing ;)

Eva
evitap67(at)gmail(dot)com

Eva's Flowers said...
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Eva's Flowers said...
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Krysykat said...

Great interview! This book looks great!

Morganlafey86(at)aol(dot)com