Author Spotlight: Q and A with Beth Kery

Today I welcome author Beth Kery to the blog for an interview.  Her newest book, Explosive will release on Dec 7.  You can read my review here.

Beth Kery grew up in a huge house built in the nineteenth century where she cultivated her love of mystery and the paranormal. When she wasn’t hunting for secret passageways and ghosts with her friends, she was gobbling up fantasy and romance novels along with any other books she could get her hands on. Currently she juggles the demands of her career, her love of the city and the arts and a busy family life. Her writing today reflects her passion for all of the above.

Diva:  Describe Beth Kery in five words.

Beth Kery: The writer or the books? I’ll do the booksJ 

Hot, longing, intense, emotional, satisfying.

Diva:  When did you decide to become writer?

Beth Kery:  I actually wanted to write since I was in my early twenties. It wasn’t until around four years ago that I first submitted an erotic romance, however. I was first published in 2007, in ebooks, 2008 at a New York publisher (Berkley).

Diva:  Who are some of your favorite authors?

Beth Kery:  Shiloh Walker, Julie James, Megan Hart, Sandra Brown, Mary Stewart, J.K. Rowling (off the top of my head. There are lots, lots more).

Diva:  What three things must you have while you're writing?

Beth Kery:  Quiet, decent sleep, at least two cups of coffee

Diva:  How did you come up with the idea to write Explosive?  What was your inspiration?

I work in the behavioral health field, and I’ve always wanted to do a story about a man who had partial memory loss. Having worked in traumatic brain injury units, ICU’s and emergency rooms, I wanted to do it realistically, however, versus the soap-opera-amnesia trope. Part of the inspiration, too, came from wanting to realistically portray a vulnerable hero who was still alpha to the core. It’s a thin line to walk, but I think (I hope) I succeeded with Thomas.

Diva:  If you could pick actors to play your main characters, Thomas and Sophie, who would you pick?

Beth Kery:  I had two images/photos in mind for the exterior appearance of Thomas and Sophie, but I have to admit, I genuinely don’t equate the images to the characters, which are much more complex.  However, it does help for me to imagine what they look like as they move around in a scene.  What is the other character seeing, on the surface?  Here are the two people I used to visualize Thomas and Sophie’s appearance, one of them well known actress, Katherine Heigl. Sophie has the genes of a Hollywood movie goddess, but she wants nothing to do with that scene because of her parents. She’s a compassionate intellectual, and a physician.

Thomas is beautiful, and he’s tortured. This photo  helped me to see him in scenes. It has the hints of not just his sensuality, but his broodiness and his torment. Oh…and I love, love his hands. Very male, very erotic.

Diva:  Are you working on any new books that you can tell us a bit about?

Beth Kery:  I’m in the process of working on a very special project for me, a mini-series for Harlequin Special Edition called Home to Harbor Town. It’s about three very different families, all of whom are irrevocably tied together after one fateful night and a fatal car crash. Harbor Town is a very emotional, intense read. I really appreciate Harlequin Special Edition for picking it up and being so supportive of the trope.

I will continue to write erotic romances under the pen names of both Beth Kery and Bethany Kane, and have several books under both pennames coming out in 2011.

Thanks Beth for that great interview.  If you want to learn more about Beth Kery and her books, visit her website at  http://www.bethkery.com

Here’s an added bonus for anyone that has never read Beth Kery’s work.  She’s got a FREE hot holiday read that will be available until Dec 15.  Here are the dets.

Holiday Bound by Beth Kery

Book Blurb

Alex Carradine can’t believe his father wants to come and visit his ski resort. Could it be that after so many stormy years, “slick Mitch” Carridine wants to offer an olive branch? Maybe the old man is mellowing, settling down with the new lover he’s bringing along.

Then Alex realizes the acid truth. This is no warm family visit. His father’s latest conquest is none other than the woman of Alex’s sexual fantasies, meant only to dangle tauntingly in front of his face. At least an unexpected blizzard has frozen his father out of the picture entirely.

Angeline Kastakis was looking forward to taking the next step in her relationship with Mitch. Too late she realizes she’s been led into a familial battle zone. Now it’s Christmas and she’s marooned in a blizzard with an insolent, gorgeous hunk of man whose blazing blue eyes tell her loud and clear he wants her in his bed. Preferably tied to it with a bow.

There’s no escape in sight. But as Alex stirs her secret longing to be mastered by a man, escape is the last thing on her mind…

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