Fallen Angel Reviews would like to welcome Alayne Warren!! Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions Alayne!!

Would you mind starting off with telling us a little about yourself?

Sure! I’m a happily married mother of two, a son who will be eight in December and a daughter who is three. I live in Central Illinois, only ninety miles from where I grew up. I’m a stay-at-home mom and author, and that’s about all there is! Unfortunately, I don’t have time for any interesting hobbies, but if I did, I’d probably try to learn to play a musical instrument, which I’ve always wanted to do.

When did you discover that you wanted to be an author?

I’ve always known I’ve wanted to write, but I didn’t take it seriously until around September of 2003. An on-line friend of mine asked me to try and write a sex scene for a book she was writing. I did, she said it rocked, and it kind of took off from there. Did I always plan to write romance? No. If you’d asked me back in high school what I wanted to write, it would have been something along the lines of Dean Koontz meets a serial killer.

How did it feel when your first book was published?

Shocked. In awe. Amazed. It was a wonderful feeling, but kind of scary, too! ILLICIT BEHAVIOR got such rave reviews that I wondered what I would follow it up with next!

It seems like you entered the romance world and BAM!! You were an instant success. How long did it actually take to accomplish your writing goals?

Well….that’s kind of a touchy subject. It didn’t happen overnight, but I was actually one of those very, very, very lucky people who did get into the writing world quickly. The very first story I wrote I was lucky enough to sell. Does it usually happen that way? No, but I’m thankful that it did.

What words of advice would you give to aspiring authors?

Write what comes easily to you. If you can’t write explicit sex scenes, don’t aim for the erotic romance market just because it’s a hot seller. If you don’t like historicals, don’t try to write them. If your favorite genre is vampires and fairies, go with it. I’m a big believer in writing what you want, instead of writing to fit a specific market. Also, never stop writing! If you submit something to a publisher and it doesn’t get picked up, don’t stop! Try a different publisher; set that story aside and write something else. Whatever it takes, don’t stop writing!

What are you working on now and can we maybe get a sneak peak of some your work?

Sure! Right now I’m finishing up BEN IN A HURRY, the first in the new Star Gazer Series. It’s based on Auriga, the charioteer, one of the constellations. It is, of course, a play on Ben Hur, who of course rode a chariot. My Ben is a race car driver, and Sierra, the heroine, is his mechanic. Here’s a little excerpt for you, but it’s definitely racy. *g*

“Goddammit. Son of a bitch.” Ben was already halfway out of the pacer car that had brought him back to pit row before Sierra reached him. His helmet was already off, and she knew by the way his curses were ringing loud and clear that he was more than just a little pissed off.

“Ben, come on, now. Deep breaths.” It was pointless, she knew it, and still she tried to calm him down before he got within yelling distance of the rest of the pit crew. When Ben Harrison was pissed during a race, he took it out on whoever was closest.

Right now, that would be her. But that was better than getting the other guys riled up; more than one crewmember had walked during one of Ben’s mid-race rages. “Fuck you, Sierra,” Ben snarled, ripping off his helmet. “And fuck Ricky Taylor, too, the son of a bitch. I know that fucker bumped me on purpose.” He was steaming, beyond mad, and Sierra waited patiently for the rest of Ben’s explosion.

She didn’t take offense at his casual “fuck you”, either. She only wished that one day, he’d actually mean what he was saying.

Fuck Ben Harrison? Oh yeah, baby, she’d fuck him until he begged for mercy.

Unfortunately, Ben knew her as only one thing—the best mechanic he’d ever known. Under her jumpsuit was a body she kept in peak condition. She might as well let herself go to ruin for all the notice he ever paid to it. So getting an actual response from his harried “fuck you” was about as likely as there being no cautions in the next four races of the season.

Right now, though, avoiding the steam that was bound to explode from Ben’s ears and the inanimate objects that would likely be thrown was at the top of her priority list. Imaginings of what she and Ben could accomplish in bed would have to wait until later.

“They’re towing her in, Ben. I’ll get her secured in the truck and then back to the shop, and we’ll find out exactly how much damage she’s got. Don’t worry. It’s going to be fine.” At least she hoped it would be. She wouldn’t know what was wrong with #33 until she was back home, alone, in the garage.

Ben wasn’t listening. No big surprise there. “She’s fucked up, Sierra. Goddamn Ricky. Bumped me right at the start of turn three.” He was walking fast toward the rest of the crew, aiming to do God only knew what. “Motherfucker. Knocked me right out of the standings. I was riding third in points before this, Sierra, second in the race. Fuck!”

The last word was an out and out scream of outrage, and the crew wisely scattered. It was then that she noticed all the sounds now assaulting her ears. She glanced back toward the track—the yellow flag was gone. They’d only waited two laps. Just enough time to pull Ben’s car from the grass and do two laps of needless caution. Forty-seven laps from the finish line, they were in a hurry to end. Ben, on the other hand, wouldn’t be in a hurry to do much of anything else today except rant and rave.

Sierra really couldn’t blame him. Not this time. She didn’t know if Ricky Taylor had purposely nudged the #33 car out of the way or not—she’d probably never know. But something was wrong with her baby. It was as much her car as Ben’s. And, of course, Stanley Carter’s, who actually owned the car, but that stuffed-shirt tightwad didn’t know a carburetor from a spark plug, so he held no position of merit in her eyes.

She watched as Ben flung his helmet across their little area of crew space. It hit a jack, fell to floor, and promptly cracked down the middle. Yep, there it was. Sierra had known that things would start flying eventually.

“Screwed up my standings good. ‘Gonna kick his ass, I swear to God.” He was muttering now, walking past the crew without a word in their direction. He didn’t throw anything else, either.

This was a bad sign. Very, very bad. One short outburst, one thrown helmet?

Ben Harrison was going to blow—and it was going to be an eruption of volcanic proportions.

And Sierra McKenzie planned to be there. Oh yeah, she wasn’t missing this one. What Ben needed was something else to take his energies out on. Or someone else. And she was just the woman for the job.

What can we expect from Alayne Warren in the future?

PLYMOUTH ROCK 2075 will be out just in time for Thanksgiving. THE NUTCRACKER for Christmas, and the Star Gazer Series will start in January 2005.

In your book, Illicit Behavior, you write from a man’s point of view. Did you find this difficult to do?

I didn’t purposely set out to write ILLICIT BEHAVIOR from David’s point of view, but once I started writing, the story naturally lent itself to his voice. I like experimenting with different points of view—I’ve now done third person, first person, first person of two different characters within the same story. It’s a lot of fun!

Out of all your books, who is your favorite character and why?

Wow that’s a difficult question! My favorite male character would have to be Ayden, from AYDEN’S FOLLY. Just because he’s part Irish, part Italian, and a total stud. *g* My favorite female character to date would have to be Lilith, from LILITH SUMMONED. She’s smart, strong, and a Wiccan Priestess. Definitely not someone to mess with!

Do you believe in writer’s block?

I’m sure it exists, but I don’t suffer from it. What I suffer from is procrastination! LOL I readily admit that I am my own worst enemy when it comes to writing. I put things off until the last minute, then scramble to get a story finished. However, I seem to work better under pressure, and those stories that wait to get finished until the last minute always get bigger raves than those I’ve sweated over for months.

When you are not writing, what do you like to do? Do you have any hobbies?

No hobbies, simply because I don’t have time. But I read every second I can—romance, thriller, mystery. Reading relaxes me, and it will always be the thing I want to do when not writing.

Do you have a “To Be Read” pile and what books are on it?

Right now, I have over 1,300 books in my To Be Read pile! It’s huge…I can’t stop buying books I want to read, but even reading a book every two days it’s going to take me years to get through it! My husband says that if I quit buying new ones I could catch up, but why would I want to do that! LOL As for who is in it? All the Kensington Brava authors, lots of eXtasy Books titles, and a million in-between.

Is there anything else you would like to add to this interview?

If you’re interested in writing, there’s no better way to learn than by reading. Read the genres you like and note how the authors work. But always—ALWAYS—find your own voice when writing! Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t succeed! And most of all, keep writing!

Thank you, Alayne!! If you would like to learn more about Alayne Warren, check out her website @ http://www.jenniferwardrip.com/AWmainpage2.html .



Interviewed by: Jennifer