Today at FAR, we have the pleasure of speaking to Diana Laurence.

Hi Diana! And welcome to Fallen Angel Reviews! The readers are eagerly waiting to hear about Diana.

Hi Linda, I'm just so appreciative that FAR wanted to speak with me! It's an honor and a privilege.

Your website is quite interesting and informative. Writing erotica with soul. Your stories are engaging. I have read some of them and the Soulful Sex II anthology was amazing with all the stories inside.

Thanks so much, Linda! I love working on my website and making it fun and unique. In the "Soul" section I talk a lot about what I mean by "erotica with soul." Visitors to that page will be surprised to learn my writing style was inspired largely by an ex-monk! I am a bit different in that I write stories that are graphic and intense, but also avoid the "coarse" language that some readers find off-putting. I love sex, and I look at it as something that touches our lives in a lot more ways than just the sex act.

So, that's a little deep, LOL--but on my site I also have a lot of fun stuff. There's my character gallery, with original portraits of dozens of my characters. Some of them are pretty hot, if I do say so myself! :-) The Diana page has links to my "What Type of Romantic are You?" quiz, crazy portraits of me in costume, my drawing/painting and polymer clay galleries, and more. Wander around the site and you will find blurbs and plenty of enticing excerpts from all my works, a page about my original romance fortune telling cards, all kinds of fun stuff.

Thanks for the compliment on Soulful Sex II! Altogether I have written six volumes of these sensual tales: Volumes I, II and III, and the Paranormal, Science Fiction and Fantasy Collections. I tried to include stories for everyone in these books: there are contemporaries, a Regency, a fairy tale...there are vampires, aliens, mermaids, gods, and everything in between.

Your new release Bloodchained is a paranormal suspense novel. Can you tell us a little about Grace Gilder and her brother Sebastian, and the story surrounding them?

Let me start by saying that Grace and Sebastian owe their existence to the members of the Soulful Sex Partners Project. That's the group of 63 volunteers who signed up to help me create the first romance book ever written by a team of readers and fans. The Project started with the Partners choosing the genre, point of view, and sensuality level of the book. I then thought up three possible plots and the Partners picked their favorite. They picked names for the main characters. And after I started writing, I relied heavily on their feedback and input as the book unfolded. In the last stages, I had a subcommittee of six people who read and edited the complete manuscript before I did the final version and sent it to my editor. I really believe the resulting book is very special. I could never have done it by myself; my Partners did so much to enrich and improve every page.

So, as to the book: Bloodchained is about Grace and her younger brother Sebastian, who were orphaned at an early age and took over their parents' inn and tavern. The Gilder's Inn is located on the road to the famous Temple of Love, where pilgrims travel to plea for help from the Powers to solve their romance problems. Sounds pretty cozy and idyllic, and it sort of is. Except that in the land of Audica, there are legends of a race of blood-drinking immortals called "Roicans," who are held responsible for some strange disappearances. So, one fellow particularly intrigued by the legends is the rich young nobleman Finn Equain. He is tempted by his research into the Roicans to wish he might have their power over mortals. The book is the story of these three characters, how they meet, and how the affairs of the Roicans threaten their happiness and even their lives.

The book was a departure from my previous works in that it is a mystery/thriller as well as a paranormal fantasy romance. There is a lot of suspense and some surprises that really come out of nowhere. I love a good page-turner! But first and foremost, it's a love story...and not to worry, there are some pretty intense love and sex scenes in it, too. :-)

Are there any other upcoming projects that you are working on?

Right now I'm doing a Virtual Book Tour for Bloodchained and doing all I can to get the word out about it. I feel differently about the promotion of this book than my previous works: I have 63 other people who care about it as well as me! I owe it to them to spread the story of their book. In fact, Bloodchained has its own website at www.bloodchained.com. That's another site I think your readers will enjoy investigating. You can see the Bloodchained book trailer, read an excerpt, learn about the eight main characters and see their portraits, read reviews and reader comments, shop the Bloodchained Marketplace store, and of course, learn where to buy the book. You can also sign up for the Bloodchained Reader’s Club to get the best discounts on the web as well as other fun benefits.

I'm really hoping reader response will be encouraging as to a sequel, for I would just love to write one. So far the reviews and feedback have been just fantastic, so I hope it continues!

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Sure...but remember, I warned you before that I am Ms. Atypical! LOL I placed my first story in 'Teen magazine when I was thirteen, so I have been writing for publication for almost forty years. Gulp! It's been a long strange road though. During my 20s and 30s I freelanced, writing short articles and stories with occasional success. I also wrote four unpublished novels, and a book of devotions which did sell quite well. In my 40s the story of my writing life took a new, "interesting" turn. I sold a couple of books to a publisher that went out of business before they went to press, so I published them in short runs myself (I opened my tiny publishing house, Living Beyond Reality Press, in 1998). Then I spent four years publishing a weekly ezine of hockey humor that had a cult following of several thousand. I told you my story was bizarre....

Well, I had written erotic fiction privately for decades, and in 2003 I happened to put one such piece online, some Star Wars fan fiction. I started getting what could only be called fan mail. I had never considered writing that sort of thing for publication, but I found two publishers within a month interested in my work. And that was the beginning of erotica with soul and the Soulful Sex anthologies!

What do you think about Internet publishing and E-Books?

I am a huge fan. Until the web, finding a publisher was like trying to win the lottery. Now there are countless opportunities for new authors to find an audience. I love ebooks: they are quick to obtain, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly. I also love POD (print-on-demand) books. I mean, traditional presses destroy something like half of what they print every year, how much sense does that make?

These improvements in technology have made my personal authoring life really a joy. You see, in early 2005 my publisher went out of business (yes, it's happened to me twice!) so I decided to republish my entire backlist myself via Living Beyond Reality Press. Not only does this give me complete control, so I can release top quality ebooks and paperbacks in a super-timely fashion, but I can price them lower, having "cut out the middleman." I have such fun with all of it, from the writing to the book design, to the creation of the ebooks, to the production of the print ones. Heck, I even enjoy the bookkeeping! And now I never have to worry about my books not being available for readers who want them, ever again.

Has there been a particular character that you hated to let go of once your book was completed?

Obviously I'm really having that problem with Bloodchained, as I sit here praying folks will want me to write a sequel! LOL. Grace is to me a wonderful heroine: she's resourceful and brave, but also gentle and tenderhearted. I love her sense of humor and her strong maternal instincts. The things that happen to her in the book leave great potential for her to grow in ways I can only imagine. Well, I hope I get to imagine them! :-) And I confess I am madly in love with Finn. He's one of those sarcastic, tortured-soul protagonists like Mr. Darcy or Mr. Rochester. I'm not sure I could live with not spending more time with this guy. Sigh.

Do you ever suffer writer’s block?

One of the greatest gifts I have is that I virtually never have writers block. Boy am I thankful! I write two monthly columns (for eCataromance I write "The Life of e" on technology, and for Novelspot I write "Explorotica" on the erotic). I do weekly posts to my blog on subjects related to love, sex, pop culture, etc. And I write other essays for the web off and on as well. So I often need to pull something out of my arse quickly and try to make it at least vaguely interesting somehow. And then there's the fiction! Well, that's easier…it tends to write itself, as most authors will tell you.

How much time do you spend doing research for a story?

Another reason to love the Internet. I couldn't even tell you! With the web handy, I research on the fly, just minutes here and there. I remember when I wrote my third novel (The Resurrection of Captain Eternity, 1998), I needed information about date rape, types of guitars, and 70s rock music. I actually first penned that book in 1990 long before "www"; I actually had to go to a library and check out a bunch of books! What took hours back then takes minutes now. Which is good because I am a very lazy researcher!

If you could meet any famous person in the world who would it be and why?

Anyone who is a fan of mine could answer that question in an eye blink: currently, I would most wish to meet Les Stroud, aka "Survivorman" on the Discovery Channel show. What's that got to do with romance writing? Well, nothing, other than the fact that the hero of my story "Spacewrecked with Joel Fennimore" is based on Les. I've read too that author Rowena Cherry used him as a consultant for a book about survivors on an island. But what inspires me about Les Stroud is that he is so much a self-made man and so gifted in so many ways. Not only can he survive (like some classic romance hero) in dangerous locales, he is also artistic and skilled enough to write and film his own show nearly single-handedly. Meanwhile, he's also my favorite musician in the world--sings, plays guitar and harmonica.

I know Les got his own show because he was smart enough to create it, and then worked hard enough to sell it to television. And with all this going on, he's also a loving family man and very spiritual and kind (even to me, and we've never met in person!) I suppose I see parallels between his life and work and my own...and I hope to be so capable and gracious as he is.

Do you have to go through many drafts/edits to get your work polished just right?

I am a huge proponent of editing! I edit over and over as I write, and then revise and polish and perfect. I'm sure I spend more time editing than writing in the first place. I suppose there are a couple of reasons behind this: First of all, when I was writing the story for 'Teen when I was twelve, my dad made me go through what seemed like six rewrites. At least. I wanted to kill him until I found out they were actually going to print my story! I realized editing makes all the difference. Secondly, I have a degree in English and just adore language. Finding the right word, making the prose flow, is a joy to me. Heck, I even edit emails!

If you could be any animal which would you be?

I love cats. Can I be a cat? I think my love of cats might be the only "classic romance writer" thing about me! LOL We have three cats only because I fear having more would mark me as "the crazy cat lady." But in a perfect world I would have a wing of rooms just for cats, and fifty cats to live there, Siamese and Scottish folds and calicos and tabbies, and someone to clean their litter boxes. I'd take care of the petting.

What is your favorite late night snack?

I am addicted to potato chips. Reduced Fat Ruffles. I'm Type I diabetic and sometimes have insulin shock in the middle of the night and must eat ASAP. Waking up in the middle of the night in insulin shock isn't fun, but having no choice about eating potato chips is not a bad thing! LOL

What can the readers expect from your talented fingers in the future?

Aw, thanks, Linda! :-D I'm really enjoying taking a bit of a break from the erotic romance stories, doing a longer and more complex work, but I can't say I'm done writing erotica with soul. I love to write fantasy, love doing sci fi, would certainly enjoy Regency if I would stop being such a lazy researcher--the language of that period is so grand! Regardless, I'm sure I will always write about love. Writing about love is how I indulge in endless affairs while remaining faithful to my wonderful husband! LOL

Do you have a household chore that you really hate doing?

Now you will really hate me! My husband has a one-man cleaning business and is Mr. Domesticity. Not only does he do all the cleaning, he also does the laundry, the litter boxes (but he refuses to do them for fifty cats), the dishes, the errands, the grocery shopping, and even a little cooking. All I do is cook and pay the bills. This is how I manage to hold down a full time job (I'm a webmaster/marketing coordinator for a company that sells machine components) and write, promote, and be a publisher...and still have time for fun. God bless the man!

Do you have any other web page that you would like to share with your readers? I noticed that you have garnished quite a number of awards on your website, too.

Thanks Linda! [blush] Well, the one other page I would be remiss not to share is the LBR Press READ FREE Project (www.livingbeyondreality.com/readfree.html). There I offer an array of my works completely free, in their entirety. Visitors can either read them right online in html, or sign up to download them as .pdf or .lit format ebooks. One of my most popular and highest-reviewed erotic stories is there, "The Scarlet Shackle," previously published by New Concepts Publishing. There are quite a variety of options to choose from, from a G-rated story about Secret Santas to my Star Wars novel The Golden Padawan. I like to give readers a chance to try out my writing at no obligation to see if it's their thing!

I've so enjoyed your great questions, Linda! Thanks so much for having me here on FAR. I hope your readers will have as much fun reading as I did blabbing on and on about myself. LOL. And please, everyone, please check out Bloodchained--my 63 partners and I will be so grateful you did!

Thank you so much for spending time with us, Diana. Please visit Diana's website to learn more of what she is doing.

Interviewed by: Linda L.