I grew up in Mississippi and attended Catholic school from 1st through 12th grade.

Does this influence my writing? Yes, it does.

The language of my work is very Southern and I'm not talking about the characters saying 'y'all'. There is a sweetness to my erotic romances that comes from the way in which I was raised to speak. I learned fairly early on that "Bless your heart." could be the same as, "F*** you!" It's just nicer to say it the first way.

But I was bored out of mind in Mississippi and moved to New Orleans for college. I often say that I was born in New Orleans. The music, the food, the people and the language shaped the woman I am today.

Does this influence my writing? Yes, it does.

My experiences in New Orleans made me bold enough to attempt self publishing.

Not only Deja Vu, but the entire Rose Gold Collection was inspired by a real life event.

I was on the train into work the day before Valentine's Day. Seated in front of me is an older White man maybe in his early sixties. I notice him because as I walk by, his briefcase is on the seat next to him and I had to sit behind him. How rude is he?

Anyway just as the train is about to depart, an older African-American woman gets on.

Well, now the man moves his bag saying, "Didn't expect to see you this morning."

"Oh, I had to go downtown today," she says and sits next to him.

I'm reading but I'm listening to their conversation at the same time. They talk about their grandchildren, senior events in our north Texas town and then this...

"Did you have a chance to try that recipe I gave you?" he asked.

"I did. I'll have to make it for you one day."

"Well what are you doing tomorrow?"

"Hmm," The lady next to me and I grunt at the same time. Then we look at each other and giggle for our blatant eavesdropping.

So the idea of romance at any age was born. I opened the journal app on my tablet and began writing. There was Darcey, approaching thirty and already outpacing her senior sales manager for generating new business. There was Lenore, in her forties with two college daughters and ready to start a new life. And there is Catalina, a recent college grad facing life on her own for the first time.

It's been fun finding love for these three.

I turned forty and realized I couldn't wait to be deemed worthy by a traditional publishing house. If my dreams of being a writer were going to come true, then I needed to do something about it. I'm pleased to see so many authors self-publishing and following the lead of indie musicians and indie filmmakers.

I received my first acknowledged fan and first review on Smashwords! This is a great place to start, but you have to work at success and I'm not there yet.

Honestly, I'm so surprised and awed that I have them.

There have been several times that I've felt I wasn't good enough to continue in this writing journey and someone will post to my Facebook wall or send an email saying they've enjoyed my work. That means the world to me and I forge ahead to my next piece.

I'm a mom of a teen, a tween and a toddler so you can find me sitting outside of a movie theater waiting for a group date to end, at a Girl Scout meeting or in Mickie D's on a play date. I'm also a genealogy addict so I'm often in the library pouring over microfilm (yes, it still exists). I have a hubby that I sometimes get to spend about ten minutes alone with, every now and again.

I have tagged my favorite authors using either Facebook and Twitter so I know when their new releases come out. I also have a great group of friends and trust their recommendations on what to read next.

I sure do and boy did it get me in trouble. I wrote a story about a girl who ran away from home because her parents didn't let her go to a sleepover. The parents were so upset that they couldn't stop crying. The father lost his job and the mom couldn't cook another meal so they starved. If you couldn't guess, it was the memoirs of a ten year old who hadn't gotten her way.

My mom found the story and I was lectured about the parent -child relationship for an hour.

Cover design is important for the sale of a book. I want to say that first because as a new writer I didn't know that. A professionally designed cover is best and Smashwords has a list of designers willing to work with you at reasonable prices. There are also pre-made covers available from a variety of sites for even lower amounts. That being said, I have had to design my own covers due to budget concerns.

Whether my own design or a professional one, I try to capture an aspect of the book. I write erotic romance so I want it to be sexy but not over the top. I tend to choose photos where the male and female aren't actually posing together.

Of course, my 2012 Swirl Award for Best Cover (In the Moment) was of a couple posing together. So what do I know?

Okay, here goes...Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison, The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, A Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence and Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King.

Now on to the why? I can't say. They touched and moved me as a person.

I'm currently working on a romantic short that I hope to have published by the end of the year.

Right now 2014 is solely dedicated to finishing The Rose Gold Collection.