Hi Jax, welcome to Fallen Angels. Thank you for granting us this interview.

Jax has released two books, Black Ice and Beantown Heat, and has a third due to come out later this year. If you're like me and like a good romance, you'll enjoy the short snippets from Beantown Heat on her site: Jaxine's Website

1. Beantown Heat was just recently released, can you tell us a little about it?

Beantown is a themed trilogy of novellas that all take place in the Boston area. One member of each couple works for Boston College. Michael is a professor of English - a very hot professor. Ryan is the hockey coach and Victoria teaches American history.

2. Beantown Heat is your first erotic romance, were there any differences for you while writing the stories in it as opposed to when you wrote Black Ice and Thin Ice?

I guess the real difference was in the length of the pieces. Of course they are more explicit in the sexuality level. But love stories are love stories, aren't they?

3. Where do you get the inspiration for your stories?

Oh, gosh, that's such a tough question. They pretty much all start with a "what if." Usually the characters show up about the same time - or at least one of the characters does. Sometimes an actor will jump from the screen and start me thinking. That's what happened in The Professor and Maryann. I thought, what if he were my professor? Then I just start asking questions until I have an idea where I'm headed.

4. While writing, how does the story develop for you? Do you go from start to finish or create scenes as they come to you?

I'm a notorious seat-of-the-pants writer. I'm trying to learn to do more plotting before I start. My first book, Black Ice, was a story that I'd carried around in my heart for years. After that, I had to come up with new stories. So, since then, I've had just the what if, just the setup, and I know I'm headed for a happy ending. In Thin Ice I didn't even see the twist coming. I clearly remember gasping when I saw it. (Thin Ice will be out this Spring from Zumaya Publications)

I find that the scenes flow from one to the next as I write. The only time I really get stuck is when I haven't been writing for a week or so.

5. I noticed from your website that you have a wide variety of interests from Hockey, romance and adventure movies to trolls and Mickey Mouse. How do you feel your interests contribute to your writing?

Well, my love affair with hockey has definitely influenced my writing. Both Black Ice and Thin Ice are hockey romances. Desire Delayed, the middle book of Beantown has a strong hockey backstory. I'm not sure the trolls and Mickey Mouse have influenced me all that much - except that they reflect my basic philosophy: Some routes to happiness are easier than others…. Carefully follow the path that seems like the most FUN.

6. Your favorite food is pizza. Do you have a particular favorite pizza?

Pepperoni and Pineapple - with ranch dressing. I don't know if the ranch dressing is just a local thing but you haven't lived until you dip the crust in ranch :-)

7. You are not only a writer; you also work on a Search and Rescue Team and are an EMT. Your books reflect an inherent understanding of humanity, both the joys and the sorrow. Do you feel your rescue work has enhanced your understanding of people?

Actually, I've always carried a strong attachment to others emotions. My mother used to call it "borrowing trouble." Guess now I'm borrowing trouble for my books. But seriously, emergency medicine is something you either love or hate. It can be a huge adrenaline rush and it can be a real heartbreaker. Sometimes you win and sometimes you don't.

Recently, I had to be on the receiving end of medical attention. It was a real eye opener and, hopefully, it has helped me be a better medic.

8. I read Beantown Heat. In fact I couldn't put it down once I started. Of the three main male characters, which one more closely resembles your ideal man?

Thank you so much, Amanda. I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

Ryan Magnussen. He's strong yet very sweet. More than that, he's very human. He's waited so long for this woman. Yet we see that part of the reason he never made a move is fear. Ryan is so real, so not a game player. It didn't take me long to fall in love with him.

9. I noticed that you like to read romance and adventure stories; do you have a particular favorite author?

I love Suz Brockmann, Cathy Mann, Cindi Dees - all write military romance - ahh, a man in uniform.

Love Lori Foster. And Robin Schone - oh my goodness.

Outside the romance genre, I enjoy Harlan Cobin and Greg Iles and Michael Connelly. Lisa Gardner - wow. Maybe I'll just spend the day reading. Forget writing today :-)

10. Your rejection letter for other rejection letters was great! Do you feel that waiting for a response from publishers is the hardest part of writing or just a cross to bear?

Waiting - I'm so not good at waiting - for anything. It's such a tough business and waiting is hard. I recently had a request for full on a military romance, the first in a series I pitched at the same time. I felt honored to have just had the request, but that didn't make the rejection any less painful. At least it wasn't a form rejection and left the door open to query again.

Waiting for reviews is difficult as well. Will others love these people as much as I did? Was I successful at painting the picture so they could see what I saw.

In reality, though, I could no more stop writing now than I could stop breathing. And when you get an e mail from someone that loved your character, loved when he did this, cried when that happened, it's all worth it.

11. If not waiting, what do you feel is the hardest aspect of writing?

I guess the next hardest thing is forcing your characters to wait. So we're back to waiting, aren't we. At any given time, I have five or more people pestering me to tell their story. Keeping them in line, not losing your passion for the folks you're with at the moment, sometimes that's difficult.

It's also hard when your family thinks you're nuts. Even before writing erotic romance, my youngest son - Zach, who's 19 - claimed that I wrote porn for a living. He often looks at me and says "Mom, they're not real." The nerve.

When I was writing Black Ice, I was privileged to interview a female paramedic who worked on the training staff of a minor league hockey team. The next year, we went back to a game and I commented that Lisa wasn't on the bench. Zach looked oddly at me and said "She's real?" :-)

12. Is there any advice you would give to aspiring authors?

Two things - READ and WRITE.

Read and read and read. Read the good stuff - read with a pen in your hand - collect all the passages that stand out - study how great writers write.

And write. The only time I get writer's block is when I've been away from the keyboard for more than a few days. I write five days a week if at all possible. I have a page count that I have to write before I'm finished for the day. Because I'm in the story daily, my mind works on it even when I'm not at the computer. The story simmers in a pot on the back burner.

If I'm away from it for any real length of time, I get totally stuck.

So that's it - read and write.

13. Most people only dream of becoming a successful writer. Now that you have accomplished that is there anything else you dream of doing?

Oooh, I don't feel like I've achieved even half of what I want to in my writing life. I have many more dreams and goals for my books. I want to be excellent. Not just in writing but in my other job as an EMT.

Sure there are other fun things I'd like to try in life - I might even jump out of a plane sometime. There are so many places I'd like to see. Some of the locals from my books would be a great place to start. This time of year I'd dearly love to be somewhere warm, where I could sit by the pool and drink something with a little umbrella in it, with my Alpha-smart on my lap. I'd like to go on a cruise. Now I'm babbling. Somebody stop me!!

14. If you could do anything or be anything for 24 hours what would you do, what would you be?

A flight medic. Hang out with Suz Brockmann for a day. Hang out with the PJ's (Air Force pararescue guys - remember the rejected military romance?) A screenwriter - you know, hang out on the set of the movie that I wrote, or the episode of Stargate. Spend a day with a few Avalanche players - like friends or something. I am so not a groupie - the idea of getting my picture taken with someone famous, babbling incoherently, etc, just leaves me distressed. But I'd love to just hang with some of these guys, have a beer, watch a game. Again, you have me babbling. (Note to interviewers world-wide - don't ask Jax this kind of question.)

15. How did you start collecting trolls? Exactly how many do you have in your collection?

I collected trolls when I was little. My mother made them outfits. I never have found that box of trolls at her house, much to my displeasure. I have probably twenty or thirty now, but since I live in a very small apartment, only a few come out at a time. Right now I have a hockey troll and a hiker troll on my desk and a Betsy Ross troll with purple hair over with my patriotic animals. I have three bears that live in the living room, two with Colorado Avalanche outfits on and one with his Hawaiian shirt. They help us win hockey games.

16. Was there any one person or event in your life that finally inspired you to sit down and write your first book?

My dear friend for the last fifteen years, Kathi Nehls, got me started writing again and always pushed me to write a novel. She always believed in me. Thanks, Kat.

I was also inspired by Diana Gabaldon's story of how she wrote Outlander (one of my all-time favorite books - when one of my fans said that she loved AJ Charbonneau from Black Ice as much as Jamie Fraser I felt like I'd truly made it). She wrote Outlander to see if she could write a novel. Isn't that amazing?

17. Are you working on anything new now? If so, can you tell us a little about it?

I am, actually. I am working on another trilogy or erotic romances featuring Seattle Storm players that we met in Black Ice and Thin Ice. Sergei and Emma are burning up the pages.

I am also working on a category length erotic romance. Here's the logline:

A successful computer geek, tormented by the Holy Grail girl who turned him down in school, puts together an elaborate deception in order to get her back, but ends up dealing with emotions he hadn't counted on.

And finally, I'm reworking the military romance, A Soft Place to Fall, and entering it in a contest in hope that it catches someone's eye.

"An Airman without a mission; a woman without a memory." Cool, huh?

These are the guys who are most pestering me for their own books :-)

18. Is there anything that you would like to add to this interview?

You don't think I've babbled enough? Seriously, I'd like to thank Fallen Angel Reviews for selecting me for this interview. I'd like to thank Amanda for her time. I'd like to thank my producer, who. . . whoops this isn't the Golden Globes, or the Oscars, is it.

Thanks to Zumaya and eXtasy for giving me my big break.

Thank you Jax for coming. I know I have enjoyed the opportunity to speak with you. You have peaked my interest about your upcoming books. I can't wait. Check out Jaxine Daniel's site to learn more about her current and upcoming releases. Jaxine's Website

Interviewed by:
Amanda