I actually wrote the first chapter of this all the way back in 2005. Then I didn’t know where it was going so I set it aside and wrote what is now my first novel, Finding Claire Fletcher, which I finished in 2006. I returned to Aberration in 2007 and it took me two years…
I wish Jacqueline Susann were here; I would love to thank her. The legendary novelist died well before I was born, but it was because of her breakthrough novel, Valley of the Dolls, that Hollywood Strip was born. I first read VOTD four-and-a-half years ago. I love the film starring one of my all-time favorite…
Training Temptation started as a very vague idea ten years ago. After reading a novel in which the heroine went to a ponygirl ranch, I wondered—what would make someone want to be a pony? It was such an unusual fetish that the idea stayed with me for years. The idea simmered in my unconscious mind…
The inspiration to translate Magnolia and Lotus came from the possibilities of the material itself. I’d already won two grants to translate and publish two books of poetry, and because I’d had this kind of success I figured I’d like to try again. What was different at the outset of the search for a project…
There is always a story – the one that doesn’t get read or published. The jumping off spot when the idea that’s forming becomes words on a page. I am frequently asked how and from where does a story begin. For me the seeds for my stories plant a garden in my dreams or in…
It is a question that I am asked time and time again… Who or what inspired you to write The Controlled. Life itself is a journey. It is full of dreams, obstacles and life lessons. It is really hard for me to pin point exactly where I got my inspiration for this book. I could…
I had always dreamed of visiting Italy. Who hasn’t? The art, the architecture, the romance of the Italian language, the food, the wine, the shopping, and all the beautiful people. La bella vita. Two years ago, I finally got the chance. It was a very last-minute decision, one that hinged on the arrival of a…
I owe a lot to Captain Shelby. Yes. I do. After all, he got me my first published book. He mystifies me, inspires me, fills me with hope for the future, sweetly terrifies me, and floods me with humble gratitude. So I thought that with PELICAN BAY being released on July 20th, it might be…
ABOUT THE SEEDS OF BEAUTY What’s the real secret to radiant beauty? It may come as no surprise that how we look on the outside is directly connected to the beauty deep inside us. What’s more, when we are burdened with the weight of low self-esteem, it’s all-too-visible in our physical appearance. That’s why a…
ABOUT SNOW DAY: A NOVELLA It happens each winter, and has for over 35 years. Every time the snow starts to fall late in the evening before a school day, the dreams begin again for Billy Stone. They are always the same – there’s a dark tunnel, and there’s blood, lots of blood, and someone…
The Story Behind the Book 