Author Spotlight - Rosanna Leo

We're delighted that Rosanna Leo is here on the minxes today, to answer the minx questions and tell us a little about her new release. Without further ado, here we go!

Tell our readers a little bit about yourself. 
The first thing I should warn you about is my somewhat-unreasonable obsession with Nutella. Once you understand that, we can be friends. ;) Kidding aside, I am a writer and librarian from Toronto, Canada, and saw my dreams realized last year when my first romance was published by Liquid Silver Books. I live for romance, and love pairing hot (preferably immortal) men with real women who have real bodies and issues. When not writing, I spend my time working at the local library and shuttling my two sons hither and yon.

What number book is this? First? 100th? 200th?(Nora only!)
From your mouth to God’s ears! I would love to be Nora one day. J Predator’s Serenade is my 8th book and I am so proud to bring it to you.

Everyone who writes knows it's not easy - what methods do you use to keep at it on days when it would be so much easier to go shoe shopping?
Well, because I also work outside the home, my writing times are few and I can’t afford to waste time. No shoe shopping for me on a writing day! If I have time to write, that’s all I do. Yes, it takes some discipline, but I love it too much to want to do anything else.

What is your top promo tip for other authors?
Network…properly. If you join a group online, don’t just post and disappear. You have to engage readers, and also relate to them. Answer questions. Respond to comments. Be there, and have fun with promotion!

How does writing fit into your day? Or does your day fit in around your writing?
Writing has to fit into my day, even though I’d love it to be the other way around. If I don’t have to be somewhere else, I am sitting in front of my laptop and losing myself in other worlds.

Is there a book you haven't written yet that you're dying to? What genre?
I’m dying to return to the first book I ever wrote, which remains unpublished. It was a sprawling love story/historical/paranormal and had some great qualities, but was far too long and unwieldy. It was my first, after all. I hope to pare it down and polish it one day…one day.

Keeping fit: Do you have an exercise regime to counterbalance all those hours sitting at a computer?
Yes! Run, don’t walk to kitchen. Whip open the cupboard door, thus engaging arm muscles. Retrieve Nutella from cupboard and wrench open top. Jump in spot from excitement as you thrust a spoon into the chocolate mixture. Breathe deeply as you ingest…and go sit down again. ;)

What was the most fun part of writing this book?
The banter. My hero is a cocky professional percussionist and bear shifter. My heroine is a regular mom who happens to have a shape shifter son (we explain how in the book). She is not afraid to take my hero down a peg or two, and I found their banter just flowed out of me. I guess snark comes easily to me!

Just for fun: a year from the end of the book, where would your couple go on holiday?
Ooh! I love this question. Gioia, my heroine, loves the outdoors. Soren, the hero, loves the city. However, by the end of the book, he gains an appreciation for nature too. I think, to taunt him, she’d force him into a tent and make him camp. However, I know for a fact he’d love snuggling in said tent!

Which of your characters would you like to be?
Um, yes, I could stand to be Gioia from Predator’s Serenade. She’s funny and has a cool, talented son who she adores. She’s mated to a very sexy bear shifter who happens to have oodles of money (not that she cares about that). And her mate is, ahem, very into her…often.

 About Predator's Serenade:
There are three things that make bear shifter Soren Snow’s skin crawl: mothers, their children, and the great outdoors. Soren is a famed musician and playboy, and he would rather spend his days pressing the flesh with the women in his fan club than developing meaningful relationships. When his brother calls in a favor, forcing Soren to revisit the Ursa Fishing Lodge in Northern Ontario, he couldn’t be more displeased. However, he owes his brother big time.
Gioia Clementine would rather not meet Soren, her drummer son’s rock idol. But when tragedy strikes her home, it seems the only one the boy might respond to is Soren. Gioia begrudgingly agrees to let her son meet him, hoping the rock star won’t turn her tween into a musical misogynist.
When Gioia and Soren meet, the sexual chemistry threatens to set the Ontario woodland ablaze. Can these two opposites find a common ground? And can they manage to resolve their unwanted feelings, even when a mysterious stranger arrives at the lodge, threatening everything?
Buy link: http://www.lsbooks.com/predators-serenade-p818.php

Learn more about Rosanna by visiting her blog, facebook and twitter.

Thank you for joining us today, Rosanna!

Author Spotlight - Rosanna Leo

We have Rosanna Leo here with the minxes today to tell us all about her latest release which is a sexy story about Love with a Greek God - a real one! So with no further ado, here are the Minxy questions, and Rosanna's answers:

What is your writing process?

That is a great question! For the most part, there is always one key idea that gets me started (i.e. a character/plot line).  I tend to do a bit of birdseye plotting in my head, and write a few chapters to see where the characters want to go.  I like to have a basic outline, but always want to have room to change and grow.  I’m not the type of author who has every detail planned before I start writing.  I’ve tried that tactic and it doesn’t work for me.  I prefer to leave myself room to branch out in different directions.  That being said, I always have a goal in mind. 

Everyone who writes knows it's not easy - what methods do you use to keep at it on days when it would be so much easier to go shoe shopping?

Luckily, shoes don’t grab me as much as other women!  Because I work part-time outside the home, I know there are only so many hours during the week that I can devote to writing.  Therefore, I’m able to stay focused.  If it’s a writing day, it’s a writing day. No question…and no shoes, unfortunately!

Keeping fit: Do you have an exercise regime to counterbalance all those hours sitting at a computer?

Oh, wow, I wish I could say I did!!  Actually, when I do get to work out, I love using the Wii Fit.  I’ve even made little Mii characters based on my characters- how sick is that?   I also love a good run.  I try to run around the block once a year.  After that, I’m good.

Do you believe in writer's block? 

Absolutely!  And I’ve definitely been affected.  I’ve always been able to write something, but I’ve definitely had moments in which I had no idea where my stories were going.  I knew the end goal, but not how to get there.  It’s very frustrating when a story stalls.  I tend to back off from the WIP for a bit, reread and edit, and eventually everything falls into place. 

Have you ever used an incident from real life in a book? 

If so, did it get you into trouble? LOL!  Nothing that’s gotten me into trouble so far!  No, I’ve never used anything verbatim from a life experience, so to speak.  My stories always have little tidbits from my life included, but not anything that would embarrass anyone other than me! 

In what way is being a published writer different to how you thought it would be? 

I am amazed at the amount of support and love in the writers’ community.  That, I never expected.  I’ve always worked in the art world and that world can sometimes be a backstabbing place.  I expected that of writers as well.  They surprised me with their genuine enthusiasm for others and their level of friendship and support.  And romance authors are the best! 

Promotion is no longer a dirty word. In what ways do you strive to reach more readers? 
I could not function without Facebook and Twitter.  They are my “go-to” promo tools and so easy to use.  However, I’ve recently connected with others on Pinterest and Triberr and they are really fun to explore as well.  There is also something to be said for involving the people you know in your promo campaign.  I work at a public library and my librarians have been so incredibly supportive of my work. 

What is your top promo tip for other authors? 

Do your homework.  There is no sense spreading your name all over a website if it doesn’t reach your target audience.  Get to know others in the business and learn from them. 

What did you learn while writing this book? 

How much I still love Greek mythology!  These are the stories that inspired and intrigued me as a young girl, and they still do.  Who wouldn’t fall in love with a tempting Greek god?  They’re gorgeous, sensual and totally Alpha!  It was so fun to immerse myself in their world for a time.  

What was the most fun part of writing this book? 

I have to say, I love writing my love scenes.  LOL!  When I started writing romance, I thought the sex might make me a bit squeamish, but I got over that pretty quickly.  I discovered there is a real rhythm and flow to writing love scenes (no pun intended) and I find they tend to write themselves.  You just have to be invested in the moment and in your characters, and it comes naturally! (Again, no pun intended!) 

And just for fun: what would your hero’s honeymoon destination of choice be? 

Greece, of course!  Eryx is a Greek god, and proud of his culture.  And my heroine Maia is a statue conservator, specializing in Greek statuary.  She is also obsessed with Greece and its myths.  I think Eryx could take Maia on a Grecian holiday and they could make love in all the old ruins! 

Conservator Maia Douglas is an expert on ancient Greece and its mythology. She would never tell anyone at the museum where she works, but she's always had a secret crush on the mythical Eryx, Greek god of love. There is nothing she loves more than to tend to her favorite statue of him, and her nighttime dreams are filled with luscious images of Eryx making love to her.

One day, the peace at Maia's beloved museum is shattered when a new director arrives. A man who looks exactly like her image of Eryx. As Maia watches, he manages to upset her ordered museum world, at the same time he inflames her with unwanted desire.

Maia does not know that her new boss is actually the god Eryx, disguised as a mortal so he may work in antiquities. Although he is the god of love, he has forsaken his sexual nature because of a curse that has killed any woman he's dared to love. Though he fights it, Eryx is drawn to Maia with a force he's never experienced in a thousand years. But can he convince her of his true identity? And can he protect her from a vengeful goddess who seeks her destruction?

You can pick up Rosanna's book at:
Liquid Silver Books
Amazon
AllRomance eBooks

Thanks for being Minxy today, Rosanna!