Hello Barbara, First, I would like to say thank you for letting us interview you. I also have to say that after reading Covenants and Down Came a Blackbirdwere very good. Below are some simple questions and would appreciate it if you can get it back to me soon. The interview will go up for October at Fallen Angel Reviews.

When did you get interested in Science and Fantasy?

I’ve been a voracious reader of Science Fiction and Fantasy ever since I was seven years old and read ‘The Light Princess’ by George MacDonald. I still read about four books a week, just for fun. Why? Because I love the freedom to explore new ideas and new worlds that you have in Science Fiction and Fantasy. The ongoing process of socio-cultural evolution has always fascinated me. Look at the way our country and culture has evolved during the last hundred years of technological changes.

What motivated you to write Bridget as the main character in Covenants and not Lily as the main heroine?

I chose Bridget so my readers could learn about the Harkers unique history, cultural beliefs and empathic abilities along with her. If I had written it from Lily’s point of view, I wouldn’t have been able to show the many different changes in the Harker family history as effectively. On the other hand, Lily herself is a complex and fascinating character. She deserves a book of her own and once I finish my latest project, I’m thinking of writing a brand new book with Lily as the heroine.

In writing Covenants, did you have any trouble of researching the background for this wonderful story such as their heritage?

Research is one of the main joys for me in writing any story. It’s a fascinating learning experience for me and I can get lost for hours rummaging through the back aisles of the library searching for obscure facts and historical references. For Covenants, I went back six hundred years starting with the Lost Colony of Roanoke Island and made sure I interwove the tales about Harker foremothers in with known historical facts. Then, I still had to keep in my mind the fact that the normal life span for the Harkers averaged about three hundred years. Those things you learn as a child, you don’t discard or forget when you reach adulthood. It was fun showing this by having the Harkers using three hundred year technology like butter churns side by side with modern day technology of cell phones, solar heating panels and automated cleaning robots. In addition to the technology, I had to overlap older language speech patterns with modern speech patterns. The ability of the Harkers to continue to learn and adapt while retaining their unique cultural heritage proved to be a critical factor in the survival for their sisterline.

As many writers sometimes get writer’s block, what inspires you to write more?

Reading books from the many different genres of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Horror, Suspense, Romantica, Medieval Mysteries and Historicals inspire me and give me ideas for new stories.

What are some of your hobbies?

My first hobby is reading. After that comes going to Science Fiction Conventions, swimming, walking my dogs, roller-skating and bicycle riding.

How do you categorize yourself among other Science Fiction and Fantasy authors in the e-book and print world?

I categorize myself as a cross-genre SF/Romance writer because I love to write accurate Science Fiction while exploring the emotional territory of courtship and Romance. In addition to saving the world, solar system, galaxy and/or the universe, heroes and heroines need to fall in love and reproduce themselves too. It’s the one thing I found lacking in straight Science Fiction and Fantasy. It seemed like they always focused on the adventure while skimming over the relationship aspects. Hey! In between the fighting, I want to see some loving too.

Now in your honest opinion if you had only one character from all your books to take with you on a trip who would it be?

Rulagh, from my latest work in progress.

Why?

Because he’s an incredibly sexy, masculine and intelligent reptilian alien.

As you write your novels, do you sometimes see yourself in these stories?

Of course, I do. I have to put myself inside my characters’ heads and become those characters in order to write them properly and show their thoughts and emotions. There’s an intense emotional connection with every character I create. Many nights while I’m writing a story, I’ll fall asleep and relive the events I’ve just written in my dreams. Nathanial’s story about the earlier Lilith Harker came to me in a dream. I was inside Nathanial during that dream. He was reading an ancient manuscript and Lilith’s tale was written in the format of an epic poem just like the Odyssey. I woke up from that dream and scribbled down a few lines of that story I was reading. The morning I used those lines for that scrap of poetry they found nailed to a tree by her brother after Lilith’s death.

Of all the Science Fiction, authors who do you admire the most?

C. J. Cherryh.

Why?

Because she writes Science Fiction that explores alien cultural and moral beliefs.

Any advice to some one who wants to write but is afraid to submit a story because of fear or rejection?

Rejection’s the name of the game. After the first six or seven rejections, you develop a thick skin. Once you start writing, you can’t stop. It becomes an obsessive/compulsive activity. I had numerous rejections before publication. Each rejection showed me where I’d made mistakes and taught me how to polish and improve my work.

Interviewed by: Melinda