FAR would like to welcome Megan Hart. Thank you for joining us Ms. Hart.

What are some of your hobbies besides writing?

I love watching movies. I enjoy scrapbooking, though I tend to do that in spurts rather than all at once. I am trying to convince my family to buy me the Sims. Not that I need another thing to take up my time, but it looks like fun. :)

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

I've been writing stories since I could. I still have some of my first efforts, really cheesy Star Wars fan fiction. When I was 12 I read Stephen King's The Stand, and that was it. I wanted to become an author. I didn't write my first novel until 1998, but I'd worked a lot on other writing before then.

Could you describe for us your idea of the perfect man?

The perfect man...hmm...Jude Law's mouth, Ewan Mcgregor's eyes...Keanu's hair...Vin Diesel's muscles. Wait. That sounds like a sort of ugly mix. Let's try this: My perfect man is the one who's got a great sense of humor, is compassionate, smart, funny, kind and generous. A great father to his kids, takes responsibility for himself, can cook and clean up after himself and does so without complaining, and isn't afraid to wear pink. Hey. My husband! (okay, aside from that cooking bit, pancakes and grilling steaks doesn't really count.)

You mention that you favorite Harry Potter character is Snape, have you read the last book? What do you think of the end?

I think JK Rowling has much more in store for us than it appears, but at the risk of spoiling anyone who doesn't know what happened I won't go into further detail. I'll just say that if you believe that Dumbledore knew what he was doing in every other book, you have to believe he knew what he was doing in this one, too.

If you had a chance to either go to the past or the future, which would you choose? Any particular year?

Hmm. The past, I guess. Maybe back to 1985. Just to have a chance at seeing Duran Duran in concert during they're heyday. Weeeha!

Do you have a favorite movie that you could watch over and over again?

Gosh...I have so many. The Matrix. Moulin Rouge. Star Wars, the original trilogy. Willa Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The Wizard of Oz. Pirates of the Caribbean. I love movies! Harold and Maude. Sixteen Candles. Closer.

What is your favorite part of a book to write?

The part between the first and last words. :)

Do you outline your stories or do you just write as you go?

I do some outlining but I'm very much seat of the pants as far as writing goes. For example, right now I'm working on a project I'm going to estimate at about 40-50 thousand words. I have almost half done. No outline. But now I have the number of scenes I have left to write, and I wrote them down so I can break down the last half of the book into reasonable chunks.

What does your working space look like?

I have a great office with floor to ceiling bookshelves on one wall, lots of windows, a large desk and my awesome computer, my workhorse iMac.

Could you tell us a little about your favorite current release?

Pick just one? I'll go with Amidst a Crowd of Stars, because that's my latest release and it was so much fun to write. I really took a leap with this story, did something a bit different. It's written backwards. It starts at the end and works back. I also love the characters in it, and the world, which I'd like to revisit in other stories.

You have three new books coming out: A Siege of Herons, Amidst A Crowd of Stars,, and Everything Counts (which I see a bit of Hermoine in). Can you give us a little info on them? When will they be out?

All three are out right now. A Siege of Herons is the sequel to my first novel, An Exaltation of Larks. It's the story of Adiel de Cimmerian. A Canticle who inherits the high magic and must find a teacher. It's not a romance or erotica, though it does have a love story in it. Amidst A Crowd of Stars is SF erotica and tells the story of Marrin Levy, a young widow settling on a desert planet who hires what they call a "field husband" to help her, and how they find love. Everything Counts is set in the same world as Dream Upon Waking, Trial by Fire, An Exaltation of Larks, The Clear Cold Light of Morning and A Siege of Herons, and takes place before Dream Upon Waking. It's the story of Elspeth Valerin, an Arithmanticist who's only ever loved one man, and what happens when he comes back into her life. And funny you should mention Hermione -- Elspeth has no Hermione in her at all, but Riordan de Cimmerian, who appears in the story as well as Dream Upon Waking and Trial by Fire, has more than a little inspiration from Snape. :)

Do you have anything else in the works at this time?

I've got a great project in the works right now called Blue Silver. It's an AmberPax, a collection of short stories, which will be released by Amber Quill Press. Five stories by five different authors, but with a little twist. All take place during the same event. It's going to be great, so look for that next summer! Also I'm working on a story using my psedonym, Willow Switch, but haven't submitted it anyplace yet.

Is there anything you'd like to add?

You can learn more about me by checking out my websites, www.meganhart.com or www.willow-switch.com. You can email me at authorm@meganhart.com. I love hearing from readers!
Thanks, everyone!

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer our questions. If you'd like to read more about Ms. Hart, take a look at her website.

Interviewed by: Serena