Please welcome my guest today, romance author Belinda McBride. We love comments and questions.
Ashley: Why do you write erotic romance?
Belinda: A few years back, I started working on a fantasy project that had a strong romantic element. There was a triangle in it, the heroine was confronted with her past lover and her present lover and had to choose. Well, I’d never, ever read an erotic romance before, and when I ended up with all three in bed together, I was somewhat horrified with myself. To me, it was sexy and made sense, but I didn’t think it would ever sell. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that ménage is such a popular theme in erotic romance! LOL! So that pretty much explains it, erotic romance allows me the freedom to explore my fantasies, whatever they might be.
Ashley: What romance subgenres do you write in? Why?
Belinda: Well, I tell people I write speculative fiction, which is an umbrella term for science fiction, fantasy, paranormal, and so forth. Within the romance subgenres, I write whatever the story and characters require, so I will do same sex, bisexual, BDSM, fetish, m/f, ménage, you name it.
Ashley: Are you aware of any themes that run through your stories? If so, what are they?
Belinda: Sexual fluidity is a big one. I don’t care for labels regarding sexuality; to me, everyone has both male and female energy. To me, love is love and I don’t like to obey the “rules” that say I have to write something a certain way. I tend to use nature as a touchstone, even in my most extreme sci fi and cyber punk stories. Since I’m a historian and cultural anthropologist, mythology and folklore shows up in almost everything I write.
Ashley: What would you like readers to take away from your stories?
a. Well, I try to put hope into the stories. Hope and redemption. I want the readers to walk away feeling something, whether it’s positive or negative. Hopefully its positive!
Ashley: What inspires your stories?
a. Wow, just about anything from pictures to songs to flights of fancy. I used to dream very vividly, and a lot of poetry came from that period. Feelings and emotions…I just read a book that was so well done that I really felt the emotions of the characters. It was really transcendent and I’ve carried some of those feelings with me for a couple days. That will undoubtedly influence what I’m working on right now.
Ashley: Will you be attending any book or writing conferences this year? If yes, which ones? Where and when?
I’m going to Yaoi Con in San Francisco this Fall. I generally stick close to home in the summer and early autumn because its fire season here and we occasionally need to evacuate. I hope to attend the EPIC conference in Williamsburg, VA and RT in Los Angeles in early 2011.
Ashley: What is your writing schedule?
Belinda: I generally do errands, email and marketing in the mornings. I care give for my disabled niece fulltime, so my schedule reflects hers. When she’s at school, I can run out and do stuff. When she’s home, I’m home. I do my writing in the afternoons and evenings.
Ashley: Do you have any other passions besides writing? If yes, what are they? Why?
Belinda: I have Siberian Huskies that I show, though I’ve been doing that less lately. I love to travel. Going to conferences and dog shows sort of feeds that addiction! LOL!
Ashley: What is the best memory?
Belinda: I’m old enough that I have hundreds of best memories! One great memory was from a trip to Hong Kong. We were there to meet some Chinese Actors regarding a project, and everything had fallen through for various reasons. Then my companion got food poisoning and we had to stay a few extra days. On our last day, we had lunch with two old school martial arts movie stars named Johnny Wong Lung Wei and Lo Meng. Amazing! We heard the inside scoop on lots of actors, got a lot of great gossip. Then that evening, we were invited to the world premiere of a Michelle Yeoh movie. While we were waiting for the movie to start, we spotted my favorite actor in the world, a man named Philip Kwok Choy. I had my photo taken with him. It was just an amazing day!
Ashley: What is your favorite comfort food?
Belinda: Campbells Bean with Bacon Soup, closely followed by chocolate cake.
Ashley: What relaxes you?
Belinda: Drugs. No…really…I love going to dog shows because I completely escape from my daily life and focus completely on that little world of grooming, showing and hanging with my friends.
Ashley: What is your favorite guilty pleasure?
Belinda: Baking. I love to bake cakes, cookies, bread and other unhealthy things.
Ashley: I'm coming to your house. :)
Ashley: What decade has been your favorite? Why?
Belinda: This decade sometimes seems like it’s been the payoff for so much pain and BS that I’ve survived in my life. So this is my favorite decade. So far.
Ashley: What is your favorite way to promote?
Belinda: I love to promote through conferences and signings. I love meeting people face-to-face.
Ashley: Where is your favorite place to write? Why?
Belinda: I have a recliner chair in a spare bedroom that I use for an office. I like it because it’s pretty spare and clean. I’ve usually got 3 or 4 dogs lounging around beside me, and it’s got a big glass door so I can look outside, yet not get too distracted.
Ashley: What is your favorite fairy tale? Why?
Belinda: I’d have to say Beauty and the Beast. It has that wonderful message of inner beauty and redemption. True love conquers all and so forth.
Ashley: What was your favorite vacation?
Belinda: I took a month and toured around the British Isles by myself once. That was a really special experience. I had a Brit Rail pass and just went wherever the train took me.
Ashley: If you had another career, what was it?
Belinda: I was a paraprofessional for the Public Health Department here. I did a lot of technical writing and graphic arts.
Ashley: If you didn’t write, what would you do instead?
Belinda: I’d probably be in a mental institution! LOL! Seriously, I’d be trying to do more free lance research. My major/minor in college was History and Cultural Anthropology. I’d love to be back in an academic or museum setting.
Ashley: If you could have one wish, what would it be?
Belinda: I’d wish for people to stop hating.
Ashley: If you could describe yourself in only one word, what would it be?
Belinda: Curious
Ashley: Are you a cat or dog person? Do you have any pets and if so, please tell us about them.
Belinda: I’m a dog person. I have 6 Siberian Huskies. The oldest is Ditto the Undead Dog. She keeps dying, and then coming back. She’ll be 15 this August. The youngest is Levi, whose registered name is “Britestar’s Goin’ Commando.” He got that name because he tends to display his manly assets more than a polite dog should. He’s 3 and just finished his AKC championship.
Ashley: Ooh! Huskies. We have a white Husky, not registered. My husband used to raise and sell Huskies before we married. The one we have now is a watchdog and pet and such a sweetie.
Ashley: What is the one thing you most want to do that you haven’t yet?
Belinda: I want to go to Xian, China to see the Terra Cotta Warriors. I also want to visit Herculenium and Pompeii before Vesuvius blows again.
Ashley: How are you doing that?
Belinda: I’m not sure that I said that, but I do embrace that philosophy. I basically do anything that I dream of doing. If you have a dream or a fantasy, the moment you write it down it becomes a goal and it is achievable. I don’t want to reach the end of my life wishing that I’d done something. I’d rather look back and remember having done it.
Ashley: Please tell us about your most recent release and where we can purchase it.
Belinda: My most recent release is ‘Educating Evangeline’ which is a novella in the Doms of Dark Haven anthology. That’s a 3 author BDSM anthology with Cherise Sinclair and Sierra Cartwright. You can find it at Loose Id, LLC:
http://www.loose-id.com/Our-Authors/Belinda-McBride/
Ashley: Please give us your urls and your publisher’s url.
Belinda:
a. My website: http://www.belindamcbride.com
b. My blog: http://www.belindam.com
c. Loose Id: http://www.loose-id.com
d. Changeling Press: http://www.changelingpress.com
Ashley: Is there anything else you’d like to share with your readers? Please do so here.
Belinda: Watch my blog and website for upcoming releases; I think 2011 is going to be a very busy year!
Thanks again.
Ashley
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