Spook-a-interview with Doris O'Connor!

EM: Welcome to the My World Halloween Bash, Doris! It's wonderful to have you here! : )

What have you come as today? And why?

Hmm let's see - hair a mess, shadows under my eyes, stained top, little loud person stuck under t-shirt, another attached to hip, several others screeching in the back ground, really couldn't eat a whole one - must be a zombie...

Whoops, nope, just me, harassed and sleep deprived mum of nine ;-)

EM: 9? *Pulls out chair and hands coffee* Sit. Put your feet up. Relax.

Before we begin, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Well, as I said above I seem to have acquired nine little and not so little people over the last twenty two years of marriage - and have recently managed to find time to actually write down the voices in my head :-) That's me in a nutshell, mad as a hatter, regularly scare the locals, coffee and chocolate addicted mummy and writer, who is always doing at least three things at the same time...

1. What's your favourite scary movie?

Jeepers creepers, hands down. It's the rhyme "Jeepers Creepers where'd ya get those peepers" - genius! Couldn't get that out of my head for days.

EM: Yay, another Jeepers fan. I love it. It is so cheesy! >_<

2. Was there a particular horror movie, or character that scared you when you were younger?

Not a horror movie as such, because I wasn't allowed to watch them at all and my gran was so good at putting the fear of god into me, lol, that I didn't watch them for ages, even when I was old enough to! But I remember creeping to the toilet, when I must have been about 9 I guess, and my parents were watching one of those real life crime-solving shows. I sneaked a peak through the crack in the door and it showed a corpse's decomposing hand sticking out of the ground. Well, little old me was scared witless by this, ran away and hid under my duvet. I still shudder remembering that, all these years later. No idea why it scared me so much, but it did - go figure.

3. Which horror would you be afraid to be stuck in?


Most of them, if I'm honest. I'm a right wuss when it comes to horror, unless I watch them with my eldest son. He loves them and always gives a running commentary that makes the whole experience hysterical.

EM: *points at self* I do that. It cracks my mum up. She actually purposely rents B horror movies and makes me watch them just so she can laugh at me pointing out how daft the whole thing is.

4. Who do you feel is the best horror villian? And why?

Hanninal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs. He has the whole psychologically menacing thing going on. If we're talking currently on telly. Eric, in True Blood *swoons*

EM: *Drools* I am totally in love with Eric. He is just soooo damn sexy.

5. Why do you feel that vampires and shifters are so popular in both literature & film/tv?


Well, apart from the actual danger surrounding them - you can never be sure whether you'll survive the encounter - they tend to make wonderfully tortured heroes. The whole struggling with their human side versus the paranormal one. And they are always physically perfect of course, which helps. I love myself a good old tortured hero.

6. Why did you decide to write a story about/featuring this particular being?

Lol, you make that sound as though I had a choice in the matter? I'm a complete panster, so my stories are entirely character driven and constantly surprise me. My paranormal romance Lure of the Blood, started off as vague idea of a law student, financing her degree by pole dancing. It was supposed to be an erotic shortie. Then the mysterious man watching her announced he was vampire and her boss decided he was a shifter and muscled in on the two of them and well, the rest is history, lol.

EM: *Points at her characters* I'm a panster as well. A bad one. But they make me do it. All of it. Everything is their doing.

7. Do you believe these beings actually exsisted once upon a time?

Once upon a time? You mean shifters aren't real? Dang! ;-)

I believe there are far more things go bump in the night, than we know about and every myth has a grain of truth in it somewhere.

EM: Amen! *High fives* I totally agree 100% with that.

8. What attracted you to the paranormal genre? Why do you write this particular genre?


It gives you so much more scope to let your imagination truly soar. I once read somewhere that there are no rules in paranormal, apart from those the writer creates in her own world. And that's so true. Very little hasn't been done already, but it's the spin every individual writer can give the genre that is so refreshing. And it's just great fun to stretch your mind as a writer and push the boundaries a bit more, even if it's just your personal writing ones. Like I said above I had no idea where my story was taking me and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride, no pun intended.

9. Who is your favourite paranormal/horror writer & why?

I have a few.

Charlaine Harris, because I'm in love with Eric, lol and Sookie is such as great heroine. Not sure I could cope as well with everything life throws at her.

Ryhannon Byrd, because her heroes are to die for and her books are scorching hot.

Sherrilynn Kenyon, because she has created such an amazing world, I can lose myself in for hours.

EM: I recently read Sherrilynn Kenyon's Fantasy Lover. Could. Not. Put. It. Down. I loved it! The rest of the series is on my too buy list.

10. Tell us about one of the most favourable scenes you have written.

For Lure of the Blood it has to be when it finally all comes together, you know that aha moment, when you can see the end and the final twist is there. Not that my characters know this yet. In this scene they're desperately clutching at their last moments together, before they part ways. I sniffed and fanned myself through this scene in equal measures, when I was writing it, so hopefully the readers will have the same reaction.

11. Out of all the characters you have created, who is your favourite and why?

Oh that's a tough one, because I fall in love with each and everyone of my characters when I write them, but if I could pick just one, it would have to be Sven and Sylvia from my erotic romance Scandinavian Scandal. That's my original baby and Sven is the first hero, who sat on my shoulder and took over completely. And Sylvia, because there is a lot of me in her. In fact hubbie was quite jealous of Sven at some point, lol! ;-)

12. If you could meet any fictional character, who would you meet and why?


Eric, from True Blood, no contest! (and my crit group will now be giggling like mad, not that I am obsessed with either the character or the actor you understand - of course not.) *cough*

EM: Of course not. Why would you be? *Re-watches all her True Blood DVDs and drools over Eric*


Are you working on anything at the moment?

I'm working on a menage type, erotic short at the moment, which also contains BDSM. Working title is My Naughty Boys, which says it all really. *grin*

I have also just completed a paranormal novella, part of a group project with my wonderful critique group.

Do you have any current release?

Nothing current but I have three imminent ones. That's if I don't get lost in my editing cave ;-)

Awakening


Blurb:

What Astrid, conservative and straight laced school teacher, knows about sex would fit on the back of a postage stamp, so she isn't at all impressed by her friend's birthday present in the services of sisterhood. What on earth is she going to do on a tropical island, designed to fulfil your every sexual fantasy. She doesn't have any, thank you very much and that is just fine by her. Men are not worth the trouble. However, all that changes when she wakes up in her very own Arabian fantasy.

Purchase link: coming soon from http://www.breathlesspress.com/

Lure Of The Blood


Blurb:

Marnie's decision to finance her law degree by pole dancing awakens her latent sexuality and the mysterious stranger lurking in the shadows sends her libido into overdrive. Attacked on her way home, she wakes up the next morning covered in bruises and with no recollection of what happened. The newspapers are full of a suspected animal attack and Marnie finds herself in her very own twilight zone.

Realising her sexy lurker is a vampire is bad enough, but her boss is the alpha wolf of a pack of shifters? Torn between her attraction to both men and surrounded by danger, she has a decision to make, that will change her life forever.

Purchase link: coming soon from http://www.evernightpublishing.com/

Scandinavian Scandal


Blurb:

Sven Larsson, international movie star, is out to repair his scandalous reputation. The last thing he needs is for an enticing bundle of curves to fall into his arms, making his libido sit up and growl Come to Papa. However, the instant sexual chemistry between them is hard to ignore.

Sylvia, young widowed mum of three, knows Sven is everything she doesn’t need in a man. Can she risk giving in to temptation and enjoy the no strings sex on offer?

With the paparazzi breathing down their necks and both of them scarred emotionally by their past demons, will they manage to heal each other...

Purchasel link: coming soon from https://www.nobleromance.com/

Where can readers find you on the internet?


Website: http://www.dorisoconnor.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/mamaD8
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Doris-OConnor-Romance-Author/241366635885432
Blog: http://thetardisscribbles.blogspot.com/

Any advice you would like to give aspiring writers?

Read, write, read and write some more. Find a good critique group, keep perfecting your art, find *your* voice and submit. Don't be afraid of rejections, they're part of the journey, take any feedback you're given and learn from it, and keep writing. Never give up on your dreams!

EM: Thank you so much for joining me! : ) I hope you have an amazing Halloween!

DO: Thank you for having me here today. It's been great fun!