Cross-posted from Minding Spot Blog

As a new author, I don’t get asked a lot of questions aside from, “Who are you, again?”

But in those rare moments when a reader blinks up at me with adoring eyes, the question that almost inevitably issues forth is, “So, where do you get your ideas?” This is not only the most frequent question, but also, to my mind, the weirdest. Because doesn’t everybody get ideas? It’s not like you have to go shopping for them, right? They usually pop up unbidden somewhere inconvenient, like in the shower. So, what I assume people mean when they ask me this question is, how do I come up with the unique combination of paranormal creatures, hot button contemporary issues, and naughty sex play that makes up the Mythica series that I write for Harlequin Nocturne.

It’s the combination that’s important, because each of the ideas I’ve come up with separately aren’t as spectacular all by themselves. Oh, I know. I’ll write about a daughter of a god who has daddy issues. Or, what if I write a book about a girl who can see right into people’s souls. Or what if I write about a guy who can take on the appearance of any person who has ever hurt him, and he uses this ability to get revenge? Or what if I write a love story about two people who have abandonment issues and use it to parallel the famous story of Calypso and Odysseus? Taken on their own, these ideas might not be able to support a whole story, but mix them together, and that’s when I start to sound like I’m creative!

The truth is that I wanted to write a series that didn’t have vampires or werewolves or more traditional paranormal creatures. I wanted to go back to basics, take our most ancient myths, and update them. I didn’t have to invent a hydra–a serpentine monster with a thousand heads who couldn’t be defeated, because any time a warrior cut off one of those heads, two more would grow back. What I had to do was put a human twist on it. Thus, my hero was born–a man who could take on the appearance of anyone who had hurt him. And because he’s a tortured hero, lots of people have hurt him. He’s a modern day arms dealer, an adaptation of the hydra into what we would think of today as a monster.

To get to that point though, I read ancient mythology. I love the old stories, and they really spark the imagination. I also like to scan the news. When I was writing POISONED KISSES, there were a lot of stories about arms trafficking in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I think romance readers–like most other readers–want to learn a little something every time they pick up a book, but they don’t want to be hit over the head with it. To that end, I like to embed a little awareness of the world into my books.

Another source of ideas for me is reading other people’s books. I like to see what other authors have done, and done well. Sometimes I’ll even pull out an old journal of mine from before I found my own happily ever after, so that I can remember what it was like to be single and looking for love. Ideas are everywhere. In the past and in the present, and one of the things that I’ve enjoyed in writing for Harlequin Nocturne is the encouragement I’ve received to write truly innovative romance.

So I guess my question is, where do you get your ideas?

Cross-posted from Cafe of Dreams

My Mythica series for Harlequin Nocturne has a single unifying premise, that war can turn men into monsters–quite literally. By re-imagining ancient Greek myths for the modern day, most of the stories have centered around American veterans, heroes and heroines who have served under the U.S. flag. But when it came to write Poisoned Kisses, I hit a stumbling block. I knew that my hero had served on a peacekeeping mission in Rwanda in the 90s, but as it turns out, the United States was not actually a part of that mission. This surprised me, and almost derailed my entire story until I discovered that Canada sent soldiers to help out.

Thus, my first Canadian romance hero came into being. Having grown up on Lake Ontario, the Canadians have never seemed that foreign to me. My agent is Canadian. I like Canadians. I even like their bacon. But I wondered, could a Canadian really be an alpha hero? Or would he have to be a polite Francophile with a fondness for hockey and pancake syrup, eh?

The first thing I did was make sure that my hero grew up in Niagara Falls–that’s close enough to the American border that a certain amount of cultural assimilation is bound to take place. It also had the additional benefit of stunning visual cues. For a story about thresholds and the underworld, it was hard not to imagine the Falls as anything but supernatural in nature.

Next, I had to learn about my hero was that he wouldn’t use the same kind of gun that an American soldier would use. His service weapon, his habitual go-to gun, would be a Browning Hi Power. In some ways, because of the stereotype about Canadians as peaceniks, Marco’s choice to become an arms dealer was more powerful. It lent an inherent tension to the story that it might not have had if my hero had been American born.

As it turns out, even Canadians can be dark, sexy, brooders. Marco’s tragic past twisted him into a modern day shape-shifting hydra and put him on a collision course with our heroine, who is hunting him, and I enjoyed every minute of writing his story. Long live the Maple Leaf!

Join the Celebration from August 22 – October 1st

To celebrate the release of Poisoned Kisses, my first full-length installment of Harlequin Nocturne’s Mythica series, I’ve arranged for a number of prizes and activities. I hope you’ll take part, spread the word, do good deeds, and have lots of fun in the process.

The Free Goodies

Charms: Peridot is known as the evening emerald, because its a yellow-green gemstone that glows like a firefly on a hot, lazy night. My heroine in Poisoned Kisses is a dark nymph of the underworld, a magical torch bearer who can see into the souls of all mankind. I was particularly delighted to see that her peridot choker made it onto the front cover of the book! To honor Kyra’s spirit, while supplies last, all members of my very infrequent newsletter will be sent a free peridot green charm upon request. (Request form can be found here!)

Bookmarks: While supplies last, my newsletter subscribers will also be sent free bookmarks upon request.

The Free Books

In addition to two autographed copies of Poisoned Kisses, I’ll also be giving away a signed copy of Jeannie Lin’s much anticipated Butterfly Swords and Sabrina Darby’s well-received On These Silken Sheets. The drawing for these will be held on October 1st. You’ll get one entry in the drawing for every link to a blog or social networking site on which you’ve promoted this book launch! Go ahead and post your links below and if you’re using twitter, use the hashtag #poisonedkisses so that I can smile every time I click on it.

The Good Deeds

The hero of Poisoned Kisses is a soldier who served on a peace keeping mission in Africa. In researching his story, I learned a great deal about the various conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The ongoing violence is heartbreaking, but romance is all about hope. To that end, for each of the first one-hundred new subscribers to my newsletter until the release of my book, I’ll be donating $1 to Doctors without Borders for their humanitarian efforts. So do your good deed of the day and spread the word!

The Fun Stuff

Have you ever wanted to have a character named after you in a romance novel? During September and October, I’ll be on a virtual book tour in which I’ll talk about Love, Monsters & Mythology as envisioned by the Mythica series. On the last day of the tour, I’ll go back and see who commented at the most stops along my tour, and will name a character after that person in my next Nocturne Bite! (If there’s a tie, I’ll flip a coin.)

I want to thank everybody in advance for their support and enthusiasm! And if you’re an author friend, please don’t hesitate to enter the drawings. Authors are readers too!