Stephanie Klein is a blogger, writer, mother, TV show writer, and author of Moose and Straight Up and Dirty. She describes herself as “A foodie who sometimes abuses hair care products, I write about love, relationships, fashion, family, and strength of self. I’m a writer, photographer, and lifestyle connoisseur living in Austin, Texas–a respite from New York, where I was born and raised.”

There is a Broadway musical, Avenue Q, in where there is a song, “What Do You Do with a BA in English?”  You have a BA in English – what can you do with that?
Stephanie – I actually got a BA in English with a concentration in creative writing and psychology.  When I graduated, I got offers in editing, but because I could not afford to stay in Manhattan and be an editor, I was forced to look for other work.  I actually got a job in 1997 with a dot com doing editing, and then designing websites for large clients.  Companies will hire smart people that they can train properly.

Right now, you seem to have quite a few jobs: mother, photographer, blogger, writer – Do they equality take up your time?
Stephanie – Every day I wear a different hat and some hats just don’t come off – like being a mother.  If I were to go to a dinner party and someone asked “what do you do?” I would at first be a writer and a mom.  Under the writer category it would come down to author, blogger, screenwriter, and a TV writer.  Photography is last, it fits in when I’m on vacation or when my kids are getting ready for Halloween.  Writing / storytelling has always been my passion.  You can tell a story with any medium, so as long as I can tell a story, that is what I enjoy.

What are your kids going as for Halloween?
Stephanie – I am going to be the Queen of Hearts , my husband the Mad Hatter, my daughter Alice, and my son the March Hare.

Do you see yourself blogging 10 years from now?
Stephanie – Probably, if there are still blogs 10 years from now!  In one form or another, I will always be writing and sharing it publicly.  I love the interaction that I get with readers.  It helps me.  Sometimes I will write myself into a shell when I’m writing a TV show or a book, and it is a tool that helps me to vent.

Do you ever feel like there may not be something worth blogging one day?  What do you end up posting?
Stephanie – Oh yes, very often.  Of course there’s always something worth blogging about, but sometimes I get lazy or tired or burnt out and sometimes posts aren’t going to be good.  I can’t always just bitch about a long day and the problems I face.  I will just throw up a picture or in some cases I will hold off on a post for a day or two.  I do try to post at least 4 times a week.

Your latest book, Moose, is about your youth where you were overweight and went to fat camp.  What advice do you have out there for overweight children?
Stephanie – For Elementary/Middle School age – It’s hard not to fit in.  You need to focus your attention on doing things to bring out your talents in life.  If your family focuses on weight – your parents are wrong.  Focus outside of losing weight, focus on things you like doing and are good at doing.  If you like taking pictures, grab a disposable camera and take pictures of your town.  Set goals for yourself – make a new friend, get up every morning before school and take pictures.  Reaching your goals is how you build self esteem.
For high school age – take it easy on yourself.  Remember that when you die, our weight is not written on our headstone.  People remember us for the things we’ve said and done in our life, not how much we weighed.  If your doctor tells you that you need to lose weight, do it, but if the doctor says you’re healthy, then you are healthy.

What advice do you have for those skinny kids?
Stephanie – Be nice to the people who sit next to you in school, because you never know if one of them will turn out to be a memoirist and will write badly about you.  No matter who you are, everyone gets made fun of at some point.  We hold on so tightly to whatever identity is given to us when we’re kids.  You aren’t who you are right now – you don’t have to be the person you are right now forever.

What was the most shocking thing for you when you were writing your first novel, Straight Up and Dirty?
Stephanie – How much publishing and PR and marketing you need to do on your own.  An author is responsible for the success of their own books.

Was it easier or harder to write the second book?
Stephanie – I guess it was harder because it was so different.  Straight Up and Dirty was an adult memoir – about my adult life.  Moose is a childhood memoir, so I had to remember and relive all the memories.  I did have all my childhood diaries to remember and review those events.  One of the hardest things about writing a childhood memoir is trying to look and be authentic to what voice you want to go in – your childhood voice or your adult voice.  Every time I interjected the adult voice, I needed to make sure it was worthy.

You have some exciting things in the works and even a TV show. Do you see yourself writing another book?
Stephanie – Yes – definitely.  It will be a book about friendship.  It will be a memoir and it will be experienced-based.  It will be about how I moved to Austin and knew no one.  It goes into how I met friends as an adult.  Also: how to get rid of toxic friends.

What is your favorite children’s novel?
Stephanie – The Olivia books.  They are fun because she has attitude.  Also Dooley and the Snortsnoot.  It’s about a little boy who is a giant, but he’s little and doesn’t understand why he’s little.  It’s a book about bravery and how he stood up for himself.

If you were stuck on a broken elevator with an author, which author would you want to be with?
Stephanie – John Irving, because he’s such a master storyteller.  He knows when to turn plot around, which details to weave through successfully.  I know I could sit there for hours upon hours with him and stay gripped about whatever event we were going through.  He brings your emotions along for the ride. Laughing, crying, scared – that’s what makes us feel alive.

Why do you think your blog is so popular?
Stephanie – The reason that my blog has gained popularity is because I am honest.  I think people relate to honesty well, just putting things out there and not worrying about what people will think.

Thank you, Stephanie. We wish you luck with your writing!

-Nick

Lauren Dane is a well-published author who has written books in the genres of romance, paranormal romance, and erotica.  Her bio and her FAQ explain a great many things about Lauren.  Her latest book Laid Bare has received rave reviews.  Despite her aggressive writing schedule, she freed a few minutes for BookSwim.

When did you decide to use the pen name Lauren Dane and how did you decide upon it?  Did you have any that didn’t make the cut?
Lauren – I knew at the very beginning that I’d need a pen name. I live in a small suburb outside Seattle and my husband’s job is pretty public and high profile so I wanted to give them all some distance from my writing.  I have great, creative friends so I tossed it out to them, asked them for ideas and what they looked for or caught their ear when they heard names.  I wanted simple, easy to spell and a combo of syllables (yes, I am sort of obsessive that way) so we started going with two syllable first names and one syllable last names.

A few that didn’t make the cut: Anna Dane.  I thought it sounded sort of like a medication for high bloodpressure.  Laurel Reed was another that didn’t make it.  I liked the way Lauren Dane sounded, it’s pretty easy to spell so I figured people could find me easily enough at a bookstore and online.

Laid Bare – Your most recent book – has received rave reviews on Amazon and Good Reads (Averaging more than 4 on each).  Did you expect it to be so well received when you were writing it?
Lauren - I didn’t really know what to expect because I had one idea for the book and sold it that way but it changed so much when it started writing itself as a menage.  Laid Bare was not like anything I’d ever written before – not the menage part, I’ve done those before, but never a contemporary one and never where it doesn’t become a menage until about 70% in.  I chewed my nails until my editor wrote and told me she loved it.  Then I chewed my nails until I got the RT review.  To be totally honest, I’m a bit overwhelmed at times by the reaction to the book. It’s been so much more than I ever imagined it would be.  When I’m writing, I never really know how it will be when I finish. I go through “wow this is AWESOME” parts and then “this is the biggest piece of suck ever written” parts. By the time I’ve finished edits and polishing and critique, I have pretty much lost any distance and ability to know what others will think, LOL

What advice would you give to readers of romance novles – in specific, your romance/erotic novels?
Lauren - Hmmm, well gosh, I don’t know. I suppose I always sort of say up front, I use words some people may have issues with. Words have immense power in my opinion, and so when I’m writing a sex scene, I’m deliberate about my terminology. I use words to create a feel. But I use graphic terms and my characters usually also tend to be foul mouthed at least on occasion.  I like to hope my heroines are always strong and my heroes, even when they’re alphas, don’t cross into abusive territory.  In the end, individual stories connect with individual readers for a whole host of reasons. Some of my biggest fans might avoid my BDSM books while others love them to death.

Do you use rate R language in your normal life – or is it a fun escape while you write?
Lauren – I do.  I find the F word to be one of the most perfect words ever coined.  It can be a verb or a noun, you can add stuff  the end and make it silly and less hard edged.  I do have three kids so I make an effort not to when they’re around.  I like to switch it up here and there. In my house we say, “Stop poodling around and get your shoes on!”

Have you written any books that you have ditched halfway through?  If so – why?
Lauren – Oh sure.  This has changed over the years because the way I write has changed. I used to sit down and write a book from start to finish. I didn’t have other projects going and I didn’t outline or use a synopsis.  But then I started selling on proposal – so what happens is you write three chapters and a synopsis and then if it doesn’t sell, you have a partially finished story, or three or whatever.  Sometimes I’ll go back to a story I was very excited about at the time, and I can’t really get that feeling back.  I can’t connect and it’s forced so I let it be. And lastly, sometimes the story just sucks and isn’t going anywhere so I put it away. Later I may strip elements from it to use elsewhere if I liked a character or something.

With Romance/Erotic it seems that covers are very important.  Do you have a say in the covers of your books?  Has your publisher ever settled on a cover that you didn’t like?
Lauren – Covers are always important I think. If you can get a book into a reader’s hand, at least to look at the blurb, or if it stops them online enough to check you out, that’s a huge gift.  I do get asked what my opinion is when it comes time to conference a cover at Berkley (Spice also asked for input).  Samhain has cover request forms where authors can make suggestions, etc.  I have covers I adore and yep, there have been covers I’ve hated.  In the end, marketing has a lot of power in this arena so while they seek my input, they do their own thing when it comes to selling the book as a package.

I’m pretty blessed when it comes to covers though. Big or small publisher, I’ve had some total winners.  Berkley has really designed some gorgeous covers and series concepts. The overall book is packaged very well.

For you – is romantic fiction a way for you to explore something you may not be able to in real life?  Or is it a way of expanding on something that is real for you but to a further degree?
Lauren – I believe our relationships with others are a huge part of who we are. They brand us, shape us, whether we’re talking siblings or parents, children or best friends. Your romantic partner or even that woman at work you hate – connection to others is hugely telling.  I have that happily ever after, I’ve been with my husband 23 years, we just had our 21st wedding anniversary. I do use parts of my life in my books, but romantic fiction, like any other kind of popular fiction, is well, made up, LOL.
So I don’t write menages because I think they’d be awesome in real life. I write them because the particular story calls for it, those characters do, whatever. People’s most intimate moments are very compelling to create on a page.

You have a few series that have fictional universes “Federation Chronicles” “Witches Knot” and “Cascadia Wolves”  If you had to pick one of these universes to live in, which would it be?
Lauren - Hmmm, Witches Knot and Cascadia Wolves are pretty much set in a contemporary world with those realities still in existence.  Only with werewolves and witches, LOL. Not a whole lot different, but I tend to love my Cascadia world because it’s pretty similar to what I have now. It’s set here in the Northwest for much of the first story arc.  My Federation Chronicles are fun, because they present endless realities to inhabit. I like the idea of that, like the idea of a universe I’d be able to create from the ground up.

You mention in your expansive FAQ that all your books have a “Happily-Ever-After”  Have you tried the inverse?
Lauren – The unraveling of a relationship?  To answer the question though: I do have non romance ideas, though I would most likely use a separate pen name for one of those (writing one now actually). As I said, I’m fascinated by people’s intimate moments and life is filled with tragedy as well as triumph. So yes, I have and I do write those stories that show the slow disintegration of a character.

What is your favorite childrens book?
Lauren - Susan Cooper’s The Dark is Rising.  I love that book even today.  If I had to choose younger grades, Are You There God, It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

Thank you again to Lauren Dane for your time.  If you leave comments here, I’ll make sure that she sees them – so comment away.

-Nick

Cherie Priest is a well-established author whose latest book, Boneshaker, hit the market this past September.  She is the author of seven books in total, as well as an associate editor for Subterranean Press.  I’ve reviewed her latest book Boneshaker in a previous posting here on the Literary Life, and I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Cherie and finding a bit more about this great author.

If you could go on a dinner/movie date with any character from Boneshaker, who would it be?
Cherie – I’m not really sure.  Lucy would probably just talk throughout the whole movie.  Possibly Captain Cly.  He would eat all your popcorn but I can see him being fun – as long as he’s not sitting in front of you.  He’s a large guy and I wouldn’t be able to see.

What do you hate most about writing?
Cherie – Getting started.  I can imagine one million and one reasons not to write.  My house has never been so clean.  I will sit down and think to myself, “There are dishes in the sink.  I should clean them,” or “The floor could use some vacuuming.”  Once I finally get myself sitting and begin writing, then it’s fine and I can write and write and write.

How often do you read and where is your favorite place to read?
Cherie – I read daily – whether I like to or not.  As an editor, it is my job to read and review, but when it comes to pleasure reading I find myself either on the couch or the bed.

What lead you to write a novel with so many different concepts in it – zombies, steampunk, historical fiction, etc?
Cherie – I moved from Tennessee to Seattle about 4 years ago and I have always enjoyed writing about the different places that I live.  I grew up a military brat so I’ve moved many places and I really like to capture each place.  After arriving in Seattle, I had that urge again.  As well – Seattle was the Mecca of steampunk.  As I was learning more about steampunk, a few things just didn’t gel with me – such as why everyone wore gas masks.  I decided to write a novel that connected a few of those gaps.

You changed quite a bit of history around – so much so that you placed an Author’s Note at the end of your book asking history buffs not to be angry! Why did you choose to use an existing place and time instead of something completely fictional?
Cherie – I’ve always been drawn to realistic places.  The truth is often far crazier than history has written it – so I liked the concept of taking something that could be one of those crazy truths.  After taking the Seattle Underground Tour, I realized how much potential there was.  I’m originally from Florida and I wanted to capture the essence of Seattle.  I wanted this book to take place in 1880 because of the world setting at the time, but nothing was really happening in Seattle at that time.  It wasn’t until the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897 that Seattle grew to any significant size.  So, I just sped up history a bit and had the Klondike Gold Rush happen a few years earlier – which lead me to the idea of the Bonecrusher to begin with.

There have been quite a few steampunk movies – Wild Wild West, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and Astroboy.  Do you see Boneshaker as a film?
Cherie – I think it would make an awesome film!  In fact, there have already been preliminary chats about buying the rights to the film – but I have no control over that.

What is your favorite children’s book?
Cherie – Howliday Inn by James Howe and Lynn Munsinger.  There was a whole set of them where they solved mysteries and dealt with a vampire bunny!

How has Twitter and social networking changed or helped you as a writer?
Cherie – Social networking has always been a useful thing.  I’ve been bound to the internet due to editors.  It has also been a great way for me to connect with my readers.  I work from home, so I do not get much social interaction during the day.  The internet has provided me with a sense of community and an outlet to feel less alone while I work.  In fact, most of the people I know in Seattle I met online and chatted with for a while before meeting in person.

If you could send a Tweet to the whole world, what would it be?
Cherie – Spay and neuter your pets.  I used to be involved in rescue work for animals.  I love cats and dogs but there are just too many of them.  That would be my message to the world.

A question came in from one of our readers:
You maintain a public and well-read blog. Do you feel you have to tailor your writing about the mundane for an audience?
Cherie – Yes and no — which is to say, I’m much more aware of what I put online than I was eight or nine years ago, when I was just doing it for fun and nobody was really reading me.  Now, of course, I have editors and other writers, reviewers, friends, readers, and heaven knows who else bopping by every once in awhile.  I use my webpage to give fans the heads up and to keep people abreast of what I’m working on, but at the same time, it’s a personal blog — an open letter to distant friends and family.  It’s a strange balance to try and strike.  So while I constantly try to keep the audience in mind, I still try to keep it casual — and I don’t do a great deal of self-censoring.

Cherie has two books coming out next year that are set in the same world as Boneshaker: Dreadnought from Tor and Clementine from Subterranean.  Thank you again to Cherie Priest for your time!

-Nick