Lacey Alexander writes the uber steamy erotica with what she calls a "touch of romance." She's graciously agreed to answer a few questions from our Vamps & Scamps. Enjoy!
What inspired you to be a writer? Did you always want to write?
I’m not sure what inspired me, but the desire to write has always been inside me. I’ve written off and on my whole life – and the “off” times were mainly due to having been told by naysayers that I would never succeed. Now that I’ve found some measure of success, I can’t imagine I’ll ever stop writing again.
What is the best part of being a writer? The worst?
The best part: the flexibility. For instance, I’m wearing pajamas as I do this interview. The worst: the uncertainty. A writer never knows how her work will be perceived, if her next book will be bought, etc.
If one of your books was made into a movie or tv series, what book would you want it to be and who would you pick to play the hero and heroine?
This question made me laugh – because my books are so very much ABOUT sex that any movie made from them would be, um, of a strictly “adult” nature, if you know what I mean. Based on that, I, unfortunately, don’t really have an answer.
What is your favorite cartoon character?
Aladdin, from the Disney movie. I thought that for an animated guy he was hot ; )
What is the hardest part about writing?
Well, for me, writing is mostly a joy. I guess the hard part for me is the business aspect of being a writer. I don’t enjoy it and it takes time from what I love to do – which is telling stories.
Do you have any habits, good or bad, or weird or funny that you do when you write your books?
Not really. I always hear authors talk about listening to certain kinds of music or lighting candles or taping up scene and character pictures around their work area, but I don’t do any of that, I’m afraid. I just write ; )
Describe what your work area/desk looks like?
Standard brown desk with a laptop – which has never been in my lap ; ) I bought it for the flexibility, but I’m so used to writing at my desk that I’ve never moved it. And I’m surrounded by lots of books, and two big windows that let the sun in.
Is there a genre/them/series that you haven't written yet, that you'd like to try writing about? Can you tell us about it?
I would love to try my hand at historical erotica.
For your Hot in the City series, did you travel to each city to do research for the book?
Yes, as a matter of fact, I did. I loved being able to provide a level of detail I could not have otherwise. Of course, some of the places I mentioned in the books were imaginary, but many were quite real!
Who is your sexiest hero to date and why?
That’s a toughie, but I guess I’ll go with Jack Wade from FRENCH QUARTER. It’s that Cajun thing ; ) Plus he was such a “protector.”
As above but female?Wow, another hard one, but I’ll say Diana from SIN CITY. From a personal standpoint, Diana was the hardest heroine for me to relate to, because she was SO very wild. But that’s what I like about her – that she had the capability to be a total wild child yet she was also mature, confident, dependable, and likable. Being wild came naturally to her and she was comfortable in her own skin.
Which of your works is your "fave" to date and why?You know, I remain really fond of FRENCH QUARTER, even though it was my first. I wrote it without ever reading any other erotica – I had this idea of what I thought “romantic erotica” should be, this goal of taking the reader on the ultimate erotic journey – and I decided if it didn’t sell, then I wasn’t meant to write erotica. So I’m very pleased that my “vision” turned out to be one that worked for so many people.
That said, I’m also really excited about the upcoming release of VOYEUR from Penguin Books next May. While I see most of my books as “erotic fantasies,” with VOYEUR I feel I’ve taken a step closer to a story that could really happen in real life and I hope readers will relate to that and to the heroine, Laura, who is kind of an “everywoman” who just happens into an extremely erotic situation purely by happenstance.
Do you ever go to the RT Conventions?
No, afraid not. Just not really my scene … I keep a low profile.
But readers can learn more about me and my books by visiting
http://www.laceyalexander.net/.
Wow, what a lot of great questions!! I want to stress that it was extremely difficult to choose, so my selection process was mostly random. Which pretty much describes everything about my writing. :)
And yes, Katrina had quite an effect. I was well into a book set in the city when Katrina hit. We'd been down in the Mississippi Gulf area for a library fund-raiser the Saturday of that weekend when the storm began to turn. We made it back to TN Sunday night, and I was glued to the television all Labor Day, watching the tragic destruction. I kept going back and forth on what to do since my book centered around crooked cops, corrupt politicians, the mob running gambling/prostitution boats in the Gulf, a battle between good and bad voodoo and -- oops -- a huge hurricane hitting the city. By late Monday night I'd come up with a new romantic suspense set in Wyoming about a serial killer (the man who was once the boy raised by wolves), which became IMPULSE.
