Author Spotlight: Brenda Huber, Romance Writer

Wow! just look at that book cover! It definitely gives me the jist of this story. The cover alone makes me want to rush and buy the book, then the title just closes the deal, don't you think?

Sorry, it seems I got sidetracked...

Hello everyone!  Please welcome author Brenda Huber my guest today for my Author Spotlight segment. 

Brenda, thank you so much for joining me today. Tell me about yourself.
Ah, we’ll get the hardest question out of the way first…It’s much easier for me to talk about my books or writing style than to talk about myself. Let’s see… I’m a stay-at-home mother of two (they are the sunshine in my day and my wishing stars at night), and I have a terrific husband. I come from a relatively large family. Before staying home with my kids, I was a Youth Counselor at a placement facility for troubled youth. I’ve recently become a driver on my local ambulance crew, and I’ve signed up to take the EMT course. My ideal day depends on my mood, but I’d have to say I love to curl up on the couch with a cup of tea and a good book or a movie on cold, rainy autumn days. For hobbies, I like scrapbooking and photography…I also enjoy creating book trailers as well.

Whoa! You've got a lot going on, Brenda! What makes you angry, happy, sad, snoopy dance? Snoopy dance?
Lol. Well I guess you could say I snoopy dance when I get a contract for a new book. What else makes me happy…finding a new book by one of my favorite authors and having a little quiet time to actually read it, and spending time with my family. Sad…when my kids outgrow clothes (it means they are growing up too fast on me). Angry…inconsiderate people, especially inconsiderate drivers.

What inspired you to write your first book?
I’ve always been a very avid reader. I remember discovering my first romance novel at my local library--I was maybe 15 or 16--it was “Captive Bride” by Johanna Lindsey. I was immediately hooked. I also dabbled with writing while I was still in school. Somehow the two meshed until I had this secret desire to see my name on the bookshelves. I think it was pure impulse that pushed me to actually sit down and start typing though.

How many books have you written?

 I’m currently working on my sixth book now. It’s the sequel to “Mine” and is centered on one of the secondary characters, the mysterious, sensual Vampyre named Styx.

Geez, another awesome cover.  Truly expressive artwork, Brenda. How do you decide on their topic?
I don’t know that I really decide. The storylines just sort of come to me at odd moments…when I’m driving the kids to school, or working around the house or something. Then they slowly evolve as I write. I think sometimes that the story takes me where it wants to go rather than the other way around.

Oh, I understand where you are coming from with that, Brenda. My characters seem to take the reins at some point and will not allow any deviation. They can be willful and very, very stubborn! When was the first moment you felt comfortable saying, “I am a writer?”
I think when I signed my second contract with The Wild Rose Press. I think it finally hit home that something I’d dreamed of for so long was finally a reality.

Who would you say modeled your career? Who would readers compare your work to?
Wow, that’s really hard to say… Johanna Lindsey, I think, gave me the initial interest. It’s difficult to say “I modeled my career after…” because I’ve had so many different and wonderful influences over the years covering everything from historical and paranormal romance and to suspense, murder mysteries, and thrillers. I don’t know that I am comfortable comparing my work to someone else’s. I guess I’d like to be able to say that I have my own distinct voice.


When do you write (daytime, nighttime, on your lunch hour, before the kids get up, after everyone is asleep? In large chunks of time or stolen snippets?)
As a mother of two young children, I’d say my writing time greatly varies. A majority of it happens now while they are in school. Otherwise, usually at night after they are tucked into bed. I try to write as often as possible, but it doesn’t always work out. Sometimes my muse ends up accumulated on piles of sticky notes until I can get to my computer. lol

Are you someone who can write on demand? Or do you have to stew and coax an idea before you sit down and write? Or maybe you write when the muse knocks you upside your head, like me?
For the most part I can sit down and stare for a few moments at a blank screen and ideas just start pouring out. Occasionally I’ll hit a spot where things just aren’t flowing right…or it seems like a struggle to get the right words to come…then I’ll take a break, a couple days/a week or two and either let things stew or I’ll just put it out of my mind all together and when I come back the kinks are gone and I start writing again.

Where did you get the inspiration for (your current book)?
 I like to listen to music when I write, and sometimes I’ll call up a playlist on Youtube. I was actually working on a different book at the time when I called up the song “Slither” by Velvet Revolver. There’s like a five second flash where Duff McKagan steps up to the mic and the lights flashed red and I thought, Man, he’d make a really sexy vampire…and “Mine” was born…lol.

How do you come up with your title and main characters’ names?
For the characters names, instinct mostly. It’s like…this guy feels like a Cole or an Ethan, or she really feels like an Alex or a Kate. The main rule I try to go by on names is not to make them too complicated. (Not only do I have to keep them all straight, but I also don’t want my reader to fall out of the story because they have a difficult time identifying with or sifting through odd names (or pronouncing them) …especially the hero or heroine.) As for the title, sometimes that’s the most difficult. You want to pick something that really catches a reader’s eye, yet something in sync with the book. I like to find a certain word I actually used somewhere in the text, something that holds meaning and really sticks out.


Do you put pieces of yourself or your life in your stories?
I think it’s impossible for a writer NOT to put at least some bit of themselves into their stories.

What is your least favorite thing to do as an author? Allow me to clarify: query, write a synopsis, write a blurb, market, you get the picture:)
Synopsis, definitely. Condensing is not my forte. I envy people who can write short stories, I don’t think I could get my point across in that limited amount of words.

The cursed synopsis seems to be the winner. LOL Do you have an upcoming release?
  Yes. It’s titled “Mine” It’s about brilliant songwriter, Alexandra Sinclair, who left the entertainment business after a…well, let’s just say a bad experience (wouldn’t want to give too much away now would we?), and ancient Vampyre warrior, Cole Gunnarrson. He’s been recruited by the Vampyre Task Force for Rogue Apprehension to identify and neutralize an enigmatic Rogue targeting the Human music industry. Cole decides he needs Alex by his side to maintain his cover and refuses to take no for an answer, but the Rogue soon sets his sights on Alex, and Cole realizes he’s lost his Immortal heart to a Mortal woman. It becomes a race to decipher the Rogues puzzling clues as time runs out and Alex’s very life is put on the line.


Sounds awesome, Brenda. Where can we find your upcoming release?

In the Black Rose Line of The Wild Rose Press. When will it be available? My release date was actually moved up and “Mine” is now available, release date was April 30, 2010. I have another book with the Black Rose Line coming out in September of 2010 titled “Shadows,” and I also have one with the Cactus Rose Line coming out soon titled “Texas Blaze.”

What do you do for relaxation?
I read… (preferably something I didn’t write :)


What TV shows do you watch?
I love Criminal Minds, CSI Miami, and The Bachelorette/The Bachelor.

What type of music do you favor?
I have very eclectic tastes. It depends on what I’m writing and my mood. I listen to everything from H.I.M. and Velvet Revolver to Michael Buble to Patsy Cline. I don’t really do much Jazz or Classical, though.

Just a note, I will be holding a book give-a-way on my blog so come on over, check out the details and register to win!

More about Brenda Huber:

Always a voracious reader, Brenda closed the cover on a book by one of her favorite authors, and said to herself…I can do this! Ever fascinated by all things mythical and mystical, Brenda decided to try her hand at Paranormal Romance and discovered her second great passion…writing. She lives in Iowa with her husband and two small children.
~.~.~
Author of Mine available April 30, 2010 at The Wild Rose Press.
And author of Shadows, coming soon to The Wild Rose Press.
brenda_huber@ymail.com
http://www.brendahuber.blogspot.com/


Brenda, it's been a pleasure having you here today.  Thank you so much for stopping by. Don't be a stranger. I'd love to have you back.  Now I'm heading over to try my luck at your book give-a-way!  See you soon:)

And for all you readers, please check out past author spotlights and look forward to new ones.  Meet the people behind the books you read. They are an awesome group aren't they? Thank you, as always, for following this blog!

D~