Today I'm interviewing erotic authors, Brenda Woody and Steve Tindle, who reconnected after 30 years and are writing as a team.
GS: I understand you coauthored BEST LOVER IN TOWN. How did you get together?
Steve: Brenda and I met in high school back in 1974. Although we were not friends we had classes together and knew each other by reputation. When our 30 year high school reunion was coming up, Brenda found me on MySpace and we started communicating. We learned a lot about each other through emails and long phone conversations. We started writing “Best Lover in Town” by connecting our computers while talking on the phone. After several months Brenda moved to the Dallas area so we could finish our book and start writing several more.
Brenda: I was looking for classmates on MySpace since our 30th reunion was nearing. There was not that many classmates but I found Steve. We started messaging back and forth which lead to emails and Yahoo IMs. Then we exchanged cell #s. We talked every night and during the day on our lunches and breaks. We even watched the same movie sometimes while talking on the phone long distance; that was fun. We really got to know each and talked about everything.
GS: That is such a great story. It’s wonderful how the internet can help us find old friends and make new ones. But I’ve often wondered how difficult it would be to coauthor a book. Do you share an office? Alternate chapters or collaborate on everything?
Steve: We have a home office set up but find we are freer to talk about where the story goes when we are in the Jacuzzi. We call it our “muse”. We write together on our laptops and collaborate on every page. We talk before hand about the story, beginning, middle and ending, before we write. Once we start typing in the notes we discuss where the story is leading and any plot changes. Together we ensure the story flows the way we want it to go.
Brenda: Sometimes an idea or story hits me and I have to grab a notepad and write it all down. Then I read it to Steve to see if he likes it. Which he does. LOL We work best together on our stories. We have tried writing singular and we don’t like it. Once in a while we come up with a story line but end up using the idea as a scene instead.
GS: Wow! Tossing ideas around in the Jacuzzi, I’m going to try that. Do you have critique partners or do you rely on each other to critique your work. What happens if one of you disagrees on how the plot is progressing?
Steve: We critique our own writings although I like to send the completed work out to a select few friends for their inputs. This gives me instant feedback before we submit to our publisher, Charles River Press.
Brenda and I have never disagreed on where the plot is heading. We talk about it and if it needs to be changed we alter it.
Brenda: Thanks to our publisher, who had faith in us, our last edit of BLT was a self edit. We learned a lot. After we have written a page or two, I read what we wrote to Steve. It’s a good way to hear the story out loud to see if it flows.
Steve is right, we are very in sync when it comes to the characters and plots.
GS: How much of your own life experience is reflected in your book?
“Best Lover in Town” is a combination of our experiences and fantasies.
GS: What made you decide to write an erotic romance? Is it a genre that you generally read?
Steve: Brenda had written a few pages of a novel she wanted to get published several years ago. She sent me the file. After I read it, I suggested to her about making it erotic. We kept the female character’s name Janet, the location and went from there.
Brenda: When I sent Steve those few pages I had written, he was very supportive something I had not had in a relationship. We took my story and together created an erotic novel.
I like to read mysteries and erotic – well I read the erotic stories to Steve.
GS: How did you come up with the title for BEST LOVER IN TOWN?
Steve: We already knew Janet’s favorite sandwich was “BLT”. So I was looking for a title with the same initials. While Brenda was still in Portland, my children and I brainstormed different words for BLT. Out of this conversation we came up with “Best Lover in Town”.
Brenda: Steve is really good creating the titles and I am very good in coming up with the characters’ names.
GS: How do you come up with your character’s names?
Steve: The names we pick relates to the time period and their position in the story. Nathan was the hardest name to come up with. You will have to read the book to understand this hint.
Brenda: Most of the character’s name just comes to me. We already have our story unfolding and the name really defines our character.
GS: Have there been any writers that have inspired you?
Steve: I feel life is the inspiration I draw from. I love to talk to fans and to hear their stories. I’ve talked to several who have told me they could relate to situations in “Best Lover in Town” then went on to tell me about their past. In some way it is therapeutic since they hadn’t told anyone else about their experiences. We have considered adding the fans’ situations in up coming novels.
Brenda: As far as writing romance, my influence have been Katherine Woodiwiss and Norma Roberts. My inspiration for erotic has been Steve, I am able to truly express myself. And boy do we have fun researching! LOL
GS: I just bought myself a Kindle recently and I love it. What do you think of the e-book revolution? Are e-books here to stay?
Steve: eBooks are here to stay but printed books will never die. We have several fans who bought the eBook so they could read it the same day but tell us they want a printed book for us to sign for them.
Brenda: I think eBooks are for the readers on the go. There are a lot of people that still like to curl up to a good print in hand.
GS: Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Steve: Write every day, even if it just notes on the plot or character. This keeps your story in front of you. Don’t allow rejections from family or friends to keep you from your dreams.
Brenda: Take a pen and notepad with you wherever you go, you never know when an idea will present itself. Always reread what you wrote the day before. This is a good time to check your grammar, punctuation, and make any necessary changes. It also gets your writing juices flowing. Also have Adobe Reader read your story to you. This is easy – click View then Read Out Loud.
GS: Good advice. I’ve had ideas pop into my head in the oddest places and they pop out just as fast unless I write them down. What are you working on now?
Steve: We are currently writing several short stories for our next book “Temptation Triggers”. We are over 3/4 complete with a deadline of January 2011. “Temptation Triggers” is due to be published in the summer of 2011 by Charles River Press.
Brenda: We also have 9 other books in the works – all in notes, waiting to come alive.
GS: You guys are really busy. Where can readers purchase a copy of BEST LOVER IN TOWN? And where can they find you on the internet?
Steve: “Best Lover in Town” is a print on demand book. We found it around the world on the web. I have Facebook friends who have bought it in Finland and England.
Brenda: BLT can be purchased at:
Barnes & Noble
http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=BOOK&WRD=best+lover+in+town
Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/098209468X/sr=1-1/qid=1275352147/ref=sr_1_1_oe_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275352147&sr=1-1
Fictionwise
http://www.fictionwise.com/ebooks/b109725/?si=0
eReader
http://www.ereader.com/servlet/mw?t=book&bi=109725&si=59
Powell’s Books
http://www.powells.com/biblio/098209468X?&PID=32322
Indie Bound
http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780982094686
AbeBooks – several international book online stores available
http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?bi=0&bx=off&ds=30&sortby=2&sts=t&x=79&y=15&cm_ven=PFX&cm_cat=affiliates&cm_pla=links&cm_ite=k117601&afn_sr=gan&isbn=098209468X&pfxid=a_361874098
Bookstrand
http://www.bookstrand.com/best-lover-in-twon
Brenda: Steve and I can be found on:
http://www.charlesriverpress.com/best_lover_in_town.html
http://www.brendawoodystevetindle.yolasite.com/
http://www.myspace.com/blt_bestloverintown
http://www.goodreads.com/brendaandsteve
http://www.authorsden.com/brendaandsteve
Our email is: bestloverintown@gmail.com
Thank you for stopping by and sharing your story – and an excerpt from BEST LOVER IN TOWN. Enjoy!
Steve: Thanks for having us Gale. I really enjoy talking to fans about “Best Lover in Town”.
Brenda: Thank you Gale for spreading the word about BLT and doing this interview with us. It’s been fun!
SYNOPSIS: Janet Anderson is searching for sexual magic in the man who can match her in the bed. Janet suspects all this and more lies within her handsome boss, Nathan Lovett. During a work-related visit to Janet’s home, Nathan and Janet give in to an attraction beyond their control, and soon find themselves immersed in a pleasurable night of uninhibited sex and heated passion. To their dismay, their luscious interlude is interrupted, and Nathan must leave on a plane to a far away place; their whirlwind coupling on hold.
Three years pass, and with Nathan gone, Janet’s co-worker and best friend, Madison, urges Janet to end her mourning and explore other possibilities. Janet attends parties and events to fill the void left by Nathan, meeting four other men. Though she experiences new sexual delights and discovers more about herself; her suitors fall flat, and Janet is left longing for the touch of her Nathan. Will the best lover in town return to finish what he started?
EXCERPT:
Janet hears a car stop in the driveway. She takes one last look in the mirror hanging in the hall. “No makeup, yet my face glows.” She nervously opens the front door. Nathan’s hand is in mid air to knock. His breath is taken away when Janet opens the door. “My god,” he thinks. “She is beautiful.” He knows it is going to be hard to keep his mind on business.
He was glad to have won her over from his competing company after hearing how good she was at her past job. Since hiring her, he felt she must have been ready for a change. So far she hadn't openly expressed why she was eager to leave her other job. Nathan has a suspicion that Janet’s ex-boss was very controlling and verbally abusive. “I’m delighted she accepted the position because now I have the best advertising assistant in town,” he thinks.
Janet invites Nathan in. While giving him a tour of her house, his first thought is “organization” just like her desk at work. The earthy decor suits her.
"Well, let’s get started," Nathan says, clearing his throat to cover his nervousness.
“Why am I feeling like a kid in high school?” he thinks.
Janet cleans off the dining room table so they can lay out the ad. They stand a few inches apart viewing the large prints, aware of the nearness of each others body. Nathan again clears his throat. Janet leans over the table. Nathan has a nice view of her backside. “Nice long legs.”
She is conscious of his eyes moving over her body. This makes her nervous as a little grin forms on her lips. "This one," she decides as she picks up the print to hand it to him.
Their fingers briefly touch. The touch is like fire searing up each of their arms. Janet is the first to avert her eyes while clearing her throat. Nathan raises an eyebrow. “She is just as nervous as I am.”
“Would you like something to drink?”
"Just a beer if it’s not too inconvenient." Nathan watches Janet walk away into the kitchen. He considers what it would be like to run his hands down her body while kissing her. “Okay, keep your mind on work.”
Janet returns with two bottles of beer.
“Ah, someone knows their beer.” He takes the chilled dark brew from her hand. Again their fingers touch, this time they linger a few extra seconds.
"I think what our client is looking for is a worldly attitude," Janet says to break the silence.
She turns toward the table in thought. Nathan can see her long neck as her head is arched back. He imagines the roundness of her breasts underneath her t-shirt. Nathan steps closer not realizing that if Janet turns around she would be against his chest. Janet can feel his breath on her hair.
"Janet, I want you to know, I…" He stops.
"Yes?"
Nathan cannot help himself any longer.
He whispers in her hair. "I want you."
Janet is surprised to hear these words from Nathan. Her mind starts playing games with her. “He’s my boss. He’s 10 years younger than me. Why does he want me when he could have anyone he chooses? But oh man, he would feel so good right now!” She could feel her own wetness building up inside. Her body is ready yet her mind won’t yield to her desire for pleasure.
All Janet’s life she has wanted to find the perfect mate to explore the magic of sex. She is well read. However, she has never acted on her desires thinking there is not a man willing to teach her. Does Nathan possess the passion she is craving? Will a younger man have the knowledge she needs to drain? Will Nathan be willing to act out all Janet’s fantasies? Janet’s mind is finally getting in sync with her body as her sweet wetness is now moistening her jeans.
As Janet regains her thoughts, she deliberately leans her body into Nathan’s. She wants him to hold her close as he kisses her hair. The thought of Nathan touching her excites her. She wonders how he will react to her being so bold. Her pulse is racing. She feels his breath on her hair. She has already passed the stopping point whole heartedly giving into her body’s desires.
