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Author Interview with Rebecca Rohman


20 Questions
(Author Interviews)

Brought to you by
Book Nook Nuts


1. Where do you write from?
At home, in Maryland, my living room mostly to be more precise.


2. When did you write your first book and how old were you? When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? 
My very first book, Uncorked, I started writing 15 years prior to its release just for fun. I was somewhere in my late teens. At that time, I had no aspirations of becoming a writer. It was purely to entertain myself.
Then in early 2010, I made a big move, and all my files from my previous two or three computers were on an external drive. One night, I was looking for a picture of my grandfather I think it was and I realized the picture folder was missing. When I tried opening the rest of the folders, some opened, and the others were blank. To cut a long story short, there I was, my whole life was on this external drive and I couldn’t get the files to open.
My husband took it to a techie guy to see what he could salvage. Let’s just say I lost 90-95% of what was on the drive. And my only other option was to send the drive to the people who got info off of drives for the FBI at a mere cost of US$900.00.
I am not a superstar best-selling author yet so I had to drown myself in an ocean of near tears over the files I lost—the family reunion pics I missed—including those of my grandad who had a stroke and later died and the list goes on. 
Anyway… one night I was going through the single CD the technician had salvaged. I kept hoping the missing folders might have accidentally moved into another folder (Dream on… wishful thinking) but there it was… A file, labeled—First Story, the book didn’t even have a name. 
I had to share this news with my husband. He was working in his home office. He’s a professor and had actually written and or participated in writing some text books. 
When I walked in, he told me he had just gotten a royalty check payment that he was not expecting. That was when I told him about the file that managed to make it through the 5-10% of the drive that the technician was able to salvage. 
I remember saying to him, “That file surviving through two computers and a major move is a sign, a sign that I need to finish this book.” And I did, Uncorked was released in 2013, since then Love, Lies & The D.A. in 2014, Love M.D. in 2015 and this year I released my  fifth novel, A Problematic Love, a novella, Unravel and Love, Lies & A Blue Christmas, a follow up novella to Love, Lies & The D.A. was released on November 15th. Since I made the decision to finish that first book, I have not looked back. I love it—I love writing.

3. How long does it take you to write a book?
It depends on the length. My novels tend to be between 120K – 140K and those take about 10 months for the entire writing process including editing. I’ve written two novellas that are between 35K and 47K and those took me just under four months for the entire process.

4. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
Sometimes, the inspiration comes from something I see in the news, or a documentary I’ve watched. I’m writing my 5th novel now, and I still hear my editor/mentor in my head saying Conflict! Conflict! Conflict! So if I see something in the news I twist it in my head to… I wonder what would happen if… a D.A. fell for the murder suspect that he’ll be taking to trial. Love, Lies & The D.A. came out of that thought. 
Sometimes an idea will be triggered from one book, and I will put it aside for my next. That was the case while writing my second book Love, Lies & The D.A. The relationship my heroine Jada McLean shared with her brother Bobby was so close, one of those what if scenarios popped up in my head and so Love M.D. was born—imagine if a woman fell in love with the doctor she thought was responsible for her brother’s…
When my then editor read the very first draft of my very first book ever, Uncorked she told me that as it stood, it lacked conflict. Meaning—the battles we or our characters have within ourselves (inner conflict) and the outside forces that create conflict in our world (outer conflict). 
Another way she put it was: What is the one reason in the world that these two characters should never fall in love?  Or why should these two characters not be together? Once I have that answer, I have my next book and it’s crazy, but when I start the book, I never know how the problems will work themselves out.
Since then whenever I start a book, all I know is the major conflict in the novel, and it can usually be summed up in one of those imagine if or I wonder what situations.



6. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
In more recent times I was into all things design, whether it was interior, graphic, weddings etc. I love design. When I’m not writing (in some ways, writing is a type of design) I’m most likely designing something—the odd graphic design job for an old client, a space in my home, an ad or teaser for my books. 
One of the most fun things I enjoy designing is the spaces where the scenes in my books are set. I’ll start with the floor plans and go all the way to renderings of what the space will look like. I also love paining and photography, neither of which I make enough time to do.

7. What Genre do you write?
Romantic Suspense and Contemporary Romance 

8. How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?
Six:
1.Uncorked
2.Love, Lies & The D.A.
3.Love M.D.
4.A Problematic Love
5.Unravel
6.Love, Lies & A Bleu Christmas

They were all gratifying to write. They each taught me new things and in some way or another brought something new to the table. My first novel, Uncorked will always be my baby because it was my very first book ever. It was not my best, but without the Uncorked experience, I would have never been able to grow as a writer and as a person which inevitably allowed me to produce better books that follow.

9. Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?
I do in the days and weeks after a new release. Evidently, I have a reputation for making people cry. I’ve had people tell me that they were crying on the train, at the salon and my most memorable one was probably at the doctor’s office. Some let me know how much they enjoy the books and others sometimes thank me for writing them.

10. As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
I wanted to be an artist or a vet. I love animals but I'm not sure if I could ever euthanize an animal myself so that idea quickly wore off. Writing in many ways is an art form, and although that’s not the exact art I had in mind as a child in many ways, I do it. I design all my promo material on my own and I have a few regular customers so in many ways, I am an artist, just not in the traditional sense of the word.

11. Tell us about your current project.
Love, Lies & A Bleu Christmas, is a follow up novella to my second and most popular novel, Love, Lies & The D.A. It follows the lives of Jonathan Kole and Jada McLean almost thirteen years after they initially met. It is set in Paris, California and Salzburg, Austria. 

The blurb is below:
When Bleu Resorts owner, Jada Kole decided it would be a good idea to keep a secret from her husband, it never once occurred to her that he might have an even more stunning secret than hers.
The last year of Jonathan Kole’s life has been marred by complications, pressure and is beyond stressful both at his law firm and at home. Jada being overseas for an extended period doesn’t make things any easier to deal with.
But secrets have a way of getting out. Add a sultry blonde and a child to the mix and Jada and Jonathan’s happily married life quickly turns into a very dark shade of bleu. As things fall apart, it turns from bad to worse when one of them ends up on the wrong side of the law and something ominous enters their lives.
With Jada and Jonathan battling problems inside their marriage and things disintegrating in every direction on the outside, will San Francisco’s biggest power couple be able to get their lives in order? Or will it bring about the demise of their world and their child’s?

12. How do you handle writers block?
I do what my old mentor suggested. “Just Write. Write anything and eventually the words will come.” That has worked for me.

13. What one subject is TABOO in your writing?
Descriptive rape, I may refer to it but I can’t write about a woman, man or child for that matter being raped in detail.

14. If there was one book you wish you'd written, which would it be?
I think I understand what you’re trying to ask me but I just don’t think that way. The books that I’ve wished I’d written, I’ve written them. The stories and thoughts that are and have been in my mind are mine and I see no greater wish than being able to have the guts and will to write and share the stories that I want to tell that are inside me.

15. What is your biggest pet peeve?
Bad manners. Please. Thank you. Hello. Good morning. Good evening. Those all go a long way. Nothing irks me more than a Facebook message or an email with no greeting or introduction and the person just stating what they want, or someone not having the courtesy to say, “Thank you.” The same goes in person, treat people online with the same respect one would in person… could you tell that was a BIG pet peeve of mine lol.

16. Is there one current TV show that is a "can't miss" for you?
Not a TV show, but I’m a Tennis Channel fanatic. I love tennis, won’t miss a big tournament for anything, and when I’m away from TV, I keep up with the scores on my PC or phone.

17. Who was your greatest influence?
My greatest influence when it comes to my broader outlook on life would be my parents and my high school principal; when it comes to my writing, my very first editor. While answering these questions I spoke to my husband about this particular question. I knew they had influenced me greatly in my life but he also brought it to my attention that they are the people I quote the most.

18. How do you choose your book covers?
I recently changed all my book covers so it’s interesting that you’d ask that question. Personally, I don’t like people on my covers and all my covers were designed accordingly at first. But after a few years I began to wonder if my personal choice was not in alignment with the masses. 
With each book I write, I do have models that I use in teasers but not on the cover of my books and they were all well received. After some research from so-called experts and feedback from social media followers I decided to change all the covers and give people a try. 
I design them myself. I like being different but just because I went with people I didn’t want my covers to be like every other book cover out there. I think my covers show that. My latest theme is a hot guy, gal, or couple on a saturated colored background and I’ve kept the branding the same throughout.

19. Something personal about you people may be surprised to know?
I’m a night person, while working late or getting ready for bed I love watching old reruns of George Lopez–the sitcom. I think he’s hilarious. J


20. How would a reader find you online? IE: Website, Facebook, Twitter, Street Team, Reader Group. 


Connect With Rebecca…

Rebecca Rohman Website

Rebecca Rohman Blog

Rebecca Rohman Facebook Page

Rebecca Rohman's Clubhouse

Rebecca Rohman Book Review Team

A Problematic Love Facebook Page

Love M.D. Facebook Page

Love, Lies & The D.A. Facebook Page

The Uncorked Series

Twitter

Goodreads

BookBub

Pinterest

YouTube

Google+


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1 Comments

  1. Thanks for this wonderful opportunity and for sharing, Tammy. I really do appreciate it :)

    Warm wishes,

    Rebecca

    ReplyDelete