As a writer of historical romance, what percentage of your “writing” time do you actually devote to writing versus research and promotion and any tips on balancing that with your role as a mom to two boys?

Ooh, tough question. Probably 75% of my “writing” time is actually writing – there is a great deal of work to be done in terms of promotion. Tips on balancing? Hmm, put aside a specific writing time, such as early morning, and stick to it. If you at least try to make a schedule, it will give you free time to do other things like spend time with family. It’s all about making those moments count.

In books authors get to control the world of their characters but in real life, we can make a mistake, miss an opportunity, etc. What would be a “do over” moment in your life—romantic or otherwise?

I don’t know if I can pick a specific moment in time, but I’d love to go back in time to when I was young, late twenties or so and begin my career then. I was 37 when my first book was published—think of all I could have done if I had gotten off my behind at 27!

Why do you think the cowboy of the Old West is so attractive to us romance readers?

That’s an easy one. I think the cowboys give us the opportunity to remember what it was like to have a code of honor, when life was simple and a man’s word meant something. I think of cowboys as the knights of the modern age. Chivalry, honor and hard work. 

Your western heroines are just as strong minded as the alpha males they fall for. Anything we modern women can learn from the women who settled the west?

I think you’d have to be a kick-ass chick to survive when the west was settled. It isn’t as if they had things like refrigerators or vacuum cleaners. They had courage and fortitude, something many modern women don’t use often enough. Relying on ourselves, finding the strength we all have inside, that’s a lesson we can all take a page from (no pun intended). :-)

Since you write spicier Western historical romances, what about the time period lends itself to that dynamic?

Well, heck, men on horses! LOL. Life was harder, which meant the joys in life were sweeter. When you’ve worked your ass off, survived in the west, the taste of pure pleasure was that much more potent.

Tell us a about the Devils on Horseback series and your latest release in that series, Zeke.

Devils on Horseback is a series of five books following the lives of five Civil War veterans from Georgia. They came home to nothing and had to rediscover who they were, and their place in the world. The first book was Nate’s story, the second Jake’s. The third book, Zeke, releases in print this month. This by far was the most emotional, the one that made me sob when I wrote it. Zeke is the hardest of the five, the most reticent and closed off. He was also a hard nut to crack, but once I did, dang, his story was so emotional and cathartic. I’ve just finished book 4, Lee, and it will be submitted for publication soon! 

If you were to choose two actors to play Naomi Tucker and Zeke Blackwood, who would they be and why?

Let’s see… Zeke is blond and brown-eyed, perhaps Paul Walker (from Fast & Furious) and for Naomi? I think Kirsten Dunst would play her well. 

You’ve now embarked on two western historical series, the completed seven-book Malloy series and the new five-book Devils on Horseback series, as well as a contemporary series. As an author, what are some of the benefits and some of the difficulties in doing a multi-book series? And, do you know each character’s love story before you start on the series?

As a reader, I love a series. There’s nothing more satisfying to me than seeing all the players in a series find their HEA. As a writer, the series can be challenging in ways such as keeping things correct and accurate from book 1 through the last book. I’ve found myself having to go back to find out what I said three books ago. LOL. It’s worth it though because I get very involved with the characters as I write each subsequent book. Definitely don’t know each character’s love story when I start the series. I definitely know the main characters and their issues, but not necessarily where their path will lead. It’s all part of the journey I take with them!