Welcome to Fallen Angel Reviews. I’m joined today by Evie Byrne. Evie, thank you for sitting down to chat with me.

Thank you for having me!

What is your favorite type of genre to write? Why?

That’s a tough one. Three of my four published works are paranormals, i.e. the Faustin Brothers Trilogy. So clearly I love paranormal romance. It’s fun to imagine a world just like ours--but better. Better because it has vampires! But my first love is historical romance, and I expect I’ll go back to that soon. And I have a huge soft spot for fantasy, too, but it’s the hardest to write, in my opinion. I have deep respect for fantasy writers.

Do you have a character that is especially close to your heart?

I love all my heroes so much I don’t dare choose between them. But my favorite heroine, hands-down, is Maddy from Bound by Blood. She’s a smart-mouthed, sci-fi loving librarian who is vulnerable and funny, but at the same time isn’t afraid of anything--not her own pending death, and certainly not a self-absorbed vampire named Gregor Faustin.

What is your favorite comfort food?

There are these thick-cut, pepper flavored ruffled potato chips that I absolutely adore. I can-- unfortunately--eat a bag in a sitting. When in need of serious comfort, I’ll augment those chips with a bowl of sour cream. And a good video. And a beer. Afterward, I’m all covered with flavor dust and grease, and aware that I’ve just consumed a zillion empty calories-- but oh, I am happy!

How many hours a day do you spend writing?

That varies. It’s catch where catch can. A whole day of writing is an incredible luxury.

What makes a great book to you?

Big, complex, terribly flawed characters. Barely contained passions. Impossible situations. Sacrifice. Redemption. I’m getting teary-eyed just thinking about it!

Has being published changed you at all? If so How?

I spend more time than ever chained to the computer, that’s for sure. Because you not only have to write the darn story, you have to edit it, and re-edit it, and proofread it and write blurbs and PR and blog posts and etc., all while working on another story.

What would we find on your bookshelf?

On my bookshelves you’d find a lot of art books and reference books. I’ve never met a reference book I didn’t like! But if you want to know what I’m reading, you have to look at the pile of books by my bed, and as I’m answering this from bed, I can just lean over and read the spines of the teetering stack on my nightstand: Son of Shadows by Juliet Marilliet, Fool’s Fate by Robin Hobb (I’ve been on a fantasy bender of late), the DVD box set of the Bourne Trilogy (How’d that get there?), Crow Planet by Lyanda Haupt, Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase (Can you believe I only just read that?), and The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. That last one and the crow book are the only ones still in process. I’m done with the rest, and loved them all.

How long does it take you to write a novel?

It takes me one to three months to write a novella, not including the editing process. If my editor has issues with my story, we might be looking at another month of revisions. I’m a pretty slow writer.

Do you plot your novels?

Ah…no, I don’t. That’s why I’m such a slow writer. I don’t know what’s going to happen when I start, and the only way I do find out what is going to happen is to sit with my fingers on the keyboard, staring at the screen, until I write something. What I write at first is generally a lot of garbage. Then I have to pick through the garbage and find the story seeds hidden within. Basically, I don’t know what the story is about until I’ve written it. And then I have to rewrite it.

How do you relax when you’re not writing?

I wish I could say I trek the Andes or swim with the sharks, but more likely I’ll be at a café with a girlfriend drinking too much caffeine and bitching about everything under the stars.

How did you get started writing fiction?

It was the strangest thing. All my life I’d told myself I couldn’t write fiction. I couldn’t imagine having enough ideas to fill a book. I loved reading, but the writing end of it seemed mysterious and impossible. But maybe three or four years ago the desire to write just slammed into me like a wrecking ball. So I took out a spiral notebook and started writing, not expecting it to go anywhere, ever. It was a private pleasure. But it was also an addictive pleasure. I couldn’t stop. No activity has ever consumed me more than writing--not even binging on ruffled potato chips! So, because I couldn’t stop, I decided to get educated. I joined RWA (Romance Writers of America), because they have great resources to help beginning writers.

Your next release in The Faustin Brother Trilogy is Damned by Blood. What can you tell us about it?

The overarching subject of the series is simple--it just three stories of three very different vampire brothers finding their true loves. This book is about the eldest Faustin brother, Mikhail--the lonely prince. He has cameos in the first two books, and from the moment he first walked on stage, I was really curious about him. He presented himself as chilly and dangerous--far different from his warmer, more human-oriented younger brothers, Gregor and Alex. So when it finally came time to write his story, I said, “Okay, mister, what kind of woman will it take to put your knickers in a knot?”

The answer came in the form of Alya Adad. Whereas his brother’s mates were both strangers and humans when their books begin, Mikhail knows Alya all too well. Not only is Alya a powerful vampire, she’s also Mikhail’s political enemy. And worst of all, she was his first girlfriend, and long ago she broke his heart. Oh, the angst!

Damned by Blood is the darkest book of the trilogy. It’s about two powerful, stubborn people clashing in a battle of wills. As I wrote it, I didn’t even know how they were going to survive their courtship. Basically, they have to negotiate a compromise in order to survive, and the path to that compromise is very sexy, very twisted and soaked with blood.

What makes a good opening?

I think a good opening should pose questions that intrigue the reader. I just figured that one out recently!

How do you deal with rejection?

Booze. ;)

What are you working on now? What’s next for Evie Byrne?

Ah! That’s so top-secret that I don’t even know. Seriously, though, I’m torn between three different projects, trying to decide where to focus. Maybe a naughty medieval? Or a dark fantasy? Or a funny Regency? Ack! If only there were three of me.

Evie where can our readers find you?

I’m at eviebyrne.com, and I also joined Goodreads if you want to friend me there.

Thank you again Evie for your time, it’s been a pleasure learning about you and your work.

Thank you so much, Sandie!

Interviewed by: Sandie