WWR: Tanya, you've written for both Harlequin Temptation and Harlequin Flipside, and now you have a book coming out in the new Next line from Harlequin/Silhouette. Has it been a big departure for you to go from writing pure romance to writing something considered much more women's fiction-y?
Tanya: Yes, writing for the NEXT imprint (which launches July 05) is a huge departure from my previous Flipsides and Temptations. NEXT novels are definitely women's fiction, and my first book for the line, Dating the Mrs. Smiths, was challenging but fun, too. It allowed me to express a different mood, a different facet of my writing. It's just like me and DVDs--some nights I want to watch a romance like While You Were Sleeping or Pretty Woman and others, I'm more in the mood for a movie like the British women's comedy Calendar Girls. NEXT books are longer than the romances I've done and the focus is so different, with neither the passionate emphasis of my Temptations or the comic emphasis of my Flipsides (although my editor did say she cracked up several times while reading Mrs. Smiths!) I hope that readers enjoy the variety as much as writers enjoy getting the chance to try something new. But romance will always be my first love, no pun intended. I'm a sucker for a happy ending and am looking forward to my next chance to write a sexy hero!
WWR: Also, can you tell us a little about your upcoming book from Harlequin Flipside?
Tanya: I had so much fun writing Spicing It Up, although, since my heroine is a chef, I spent lots of time doing food-related research and gained a few pounds while finishing the manuscript! The story is a first-person comedy told through the point of view of Chef Miriam Scott, a woman who is dumped by her restaurateur boyfriend on the same day a publisher rejects her cookbook. A late night pep-talk and bottle of wine shared with her best friend leave Miriam in an "I'll show them" frame of mind and before she can talk herself out of it, she's written a proposal for a new cookbook. A very sexy cookbook. The publisher flips for the idea, but they want to send Miriam on a February publicity tour to promote the book for Valentine's Day...enter one media consultant, Dylan Kincaid. Throughout Miriam's wisecracks and makeover, she and Dylan develop a romance, but what happens when the job's over? Miriam just isn't sure if he's attracted to the real her, or the public image the two of them have created. She feels a little like Frankenstein's monster--only with better shoes and a padded bra.
WWR: You say romance is your first love. What author's books do you like to read? Do you have a favorite of your own books?
Tanya: There's no way I could name all the authors and books I love, but in high school, I used to stay up late on school nights reading Judith McNaught's single titles over and over by flashlight. She was one of the writers whose books inspired me to try to write. Jennifer Cruise, Stephanie Bond, and Julie Kistler make me laugh, while also making me think and providing interesting characters and offbeat plots. I don't read as much historical as I used to (the time constraints of motherhood <g>) but I really enjoyed Julia Quinn's Bridgerton series. Susan Elizabeth Phillips has written some books I just adored, and I can never go wrong with a book by Jane Graves (who writes for Harlequin as Jane Sullivan). I also enjoy Cindi Myers, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Dorien Kelly, Jamie Denton, Julie Garwood, Karen Kendall, and Christina Dodd. One of my all time favorite books was the time-travel A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux. There have got to be hundreds more, but currently, I'm plowing through JD Robb's "In Death" series. Even though these futuristic novels about homicide cop Eve Dallas aren't romance novels, it's the potent relationship between Eve and her husband Roarke that has me so addicted!
As for having a favorite of my own books...yikes, that's like asking me to pick my favorite child. <g> With every story I've written, there's something I love (often the characters, whose story I was moved to tell) and at least one thing I wish I'd done differently, even if it was just a sentence on page 78! But my first book, The Maid of Dishonor, is obviously very special to me, as is the last book I got to write for the North American Temptation line, Going All the Way. It was my editor's idea to see if I could write something hot enough to be a Temptation "Heat," which was a creative stretch for me. I was pleased with how the book turned out, but at the time I was writing the book, someone close to me was battling cancer. She died shortly thereafter and royalties from Going All the Way are being donated to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. The story is light--not a comedy, but definitely a happy ending and with some laughs along the way--but a number of people responded to the dedication and dear reader letter in the book, letting me know they not only enjoyed the romance but could relate because they'd either survived cancer or it had touched their lives in other ways. I was amazed at how this book became a way for me to reach out to people, and them to me, and I'm thrilled that everyone seems to be enjoying David and Serena's hot story. Along with David and Serena, another favorite couple I've written about are Josh and Piper in Hers for the Weekend. In both of these stories, two best friends fall in love, and I think they're secretly my favorites among my books because I married my own best friend.
WWR: What inspired you to write romance fiction? Have you ever considered writing in another genre?
Tanya: I like a variety of books and a variety of movies, but I always come back to romance. It's the same with writing--sometimes I dabble with ideas for other genres, but I always come back to romance. The subject of love is affirming for me, and there's so much to do with it, whether the story is sexy, suspenseful, hilarious, heartbreaking, tender, complex or whimsical. One of the other genres I do enjoy as a reader is fantasy. Sometimes I finish a really great fantasy novel, with its rich characterization and thorough world-building, and as I drift back to reality think, maybe I'll try my hand at that. But the closest I've come so far to acting on that is a short story in the anthology Fantastical Visions. I do love reading fantasy, though! (I've been impatiently waiting for the next book in George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series for what feels like forever.)
WWR: Have you ever thought of writing fantasy romance where you could blend the world-building with the romance (and the sex) :-)?
Tanya: I've toyed with the idea (and have certainly read some wonderful books that did just that!) but so far, I'm more comfortable writing contemporary romances set in this world. Part of it is because I'm already contracted for a certain number of books and with those obligated deadlines and two toddlers at home with me, I haven't had as much time to stray into new subgenres. Maybe when my kids hit school age!
WWR: Earlier you mentioned your next book's heroine is a chef. What gave you the idea to create a character with such an interesting career? During the writing, did you find yourself watching a lot of the food network (one of my own particular daytime weaknesses)?
Tanya: The idea for an interesting character came from a somewhat boring person--me <g> No, seriously, I can be really introverted and the fact that I've written some pretty hot books for Temptation is sort of a running joke in my family. So I had the idea for the naughty cookbook first. What if this woman who really is more comfortable back in the kitchen, letting the food be the star, writes a cookbook that thrusts her into the limelight? (Of course she is subsequently horrified that her father is reading it and that little old ladies will see the risqué cover art, LOL!) In general, I'm not a huge reality tv fan, but I do like cooking shows (Nigella Bites is one of my favorites) and every once in awhile, I'll catch some sort of fashion or makeover show (as long as there's no plastic surgery involved!) So all of that added together led to Chef Miriam Scott and Spicing It Up. Once I had the idea, I not only watched food television, I read some really fun cookbooks, including Intercourses (which is almost more of a picture book) and the hilarious Booty Food.
WWR: A lot of writers complain that although reading's what made them want to write, they don't often have much time for reading once their careers take off. Have you found that to be true?
Tanya: When I'm working on a book, I'm not only short on time, I worry about reading other people's words. I don't want to unconsciously borrow any phrases or, worse, read something similar to what I'm working on (especially if I think the other author did it better <g>). However, as soon as I meet a deadline, I binge. I'll read almost a book a day for anywhere from two to three weeks, of multiple genres and different authors--turning pages while I'm cooking supper, staying up late at night to finish a chapter, not watching television so I can attack my to-be-read pile--then I'll get to work on my next idea. So while I may go a few months without reading a novel (which was unheard of for most of my life) I make up for it by reading like a maniac between manuscripts.
WWR: So, do you write at a desk in a dreary dark corner of your basement or at a window overlooking a lovely lily-filled lake :-)?
Tanya: I write in the corner of our bedroom, facing the wall. There is no window because my high-backed desk is blocking it! When my husband and I bought our house, we had no kids. Since we now have two, space is really tight, but we're looking into knocking out the back wall of the house to add on. Financially, it's a huge burden, but luckily for me, my poor husband just can't take my edits and research books piled up and blocking his dresser anymore! I dream of an office with floor to ceiling bookshelves and an actual real life window--I don't even need a lily-filled lake, just occasional glimpses of sunlight <g>
WWR: How long did it take you to get published? We'd love to hear about your journey!
Tanya: I've wanted to be a writer as far back as I could remember. My mom's nickname for me growing up was Inkspot because I never went anywhere without notepads, several black pens and usually inkstains on my hands and clothes. When I was in high school, Kathryn Falk released her How to Write A Romance and Get it Published. I read it cover to cover multiple times, highlighted a bunch of sections, typed up my first romance novel (a really bad historical), printed it on dot matrix and sent the whole thing off to Pocket Books when I was seventeen. (I was delayed about a week trying to figure out what an SASE was, but even with the self-addressed stamped envelope I included, Pocket never responded. Which is probably for the best.) It wasn't until I was married and my husband talked me into the Internet--having finally figured out how to use all of my computer's programs and functions, I was resistant to change--that I discovered Romance Writers of America. RWA helped me monitor market changes and polish my craft, and three and a half years after joining, I sold my first book to Harlequin. It came out in 2003, and I've made about a dozen sales to Harlequin since. (My husband has cheered me on every step of the way, but he does occasionally smirk because I hardly go a day without surfing the 'Net and sometimes not even half an hour without checking my email.)
WWR: Is the writing life anything like what you imagined when you first started out?
Tanya: I don't know that I spent a lot of time imagining what it would be like. Most of my fantasies centered around getting that first-sale call and the lavish ways I would celebrate. THAT certainly didn't go as planned. When I sold my first book, I was the sleep-deprived mother of a two week old baby with an upset stomach. I hadn't slept for a couple of days, and my husband had just left with my son, so I could rest, when the phone rang. When I heard the news, I figured I was dreaming. Once it sank in, I alerted my husband, and we celebrated by setting the baby in the car-seat between us on the couch while we ate take-out food from the carton. Writing isn't really a very glamorous way to make a living, but those days when I get mail from Finland and think about my words touching someone across the globe, or a fan lets me know that I made her laugh during a bad week...I'm reminded there's no other job I'd rather do.
WWR: What's the single most important piece of advice you received after you decided you wanted to be a published author one day?
Tanya: I honestly couldn't say because I've learned so much and received countless pieces of good advice from fellow authors since joining RWA. So I guess that would be my advice to any aspiring author--join a writing organization! Anyone interested in romance novels or even women's fiction could learn a lot from Romance Writers of America, but I know other genres have their own professional groups, too. Becoming active in an organization where veteran writers share their experience and upcoming writers can cheer each other on is invaluable.
If you'd like to check out some of the things we talked about in this interview, visit Food Network tv, RWA, or the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
