I started writing seriously at the age of 13. I wrote stories about Egypt, the Revolutionary War and vampires. In junior high school, my play about Dracula was put on by the drama club. Some of my teachers let me read my novellas aloud in class, boring everyone to tears!

My latest book, Gabriel's Daughter, came about as a product of the apocalypse that was due to arrive at the end of 2012. That looming cataclysm got me to thinking about an end of the world scenario...what might happen after a few stragglers survive a nuclear winter, what their world might look like, and what kind of social structure would emerge.

Part of me likes the control! With my New York publishers, I've had some misleading back blurbs and covers that did not reflect the novel. Being an indie, I can eliminate those types of issues. I also love the ease in which I can improve my books over their lifetimes. If a reader mentions something in a review that I believe has merit, I will actually revisit my book and make changes.
I am also an accomplished artist, so I enjoy all aspects of creating books--from the inside out.

Smashwords has helped me distribute beyond the big A. Creating digital versions of books and uploading them to various online vendors can be extremely time intensive. I would rather spend my time writing! With Smashwords, I can upload once and let them do their background magic.

I love to create worlds and characters in my head and then bring them to life on the page. Touching a reader's heart, and hearing how a story inspired them or helped them get through a tough time, makes writing the best of all possible careers.

Fans are everything. Without someone to read my work, why would I bother to write anything down? Without appreciation and critique, I would not grow as a writer.

I'm working on the third book in The Londo Chronicles series. The book is tentatively titled "Gabriel's Folly." I'm challenged, though, because I have to write about a red-headed hero! That's tough! I always do tall, dark and handsome.

Talk about writing oneself into a corner...

Anne Rice, Pat Conroy, Sherman Alexie, Barbara Kingsolver

That little voice in my head, working through the next great scene. Oh, and a nice, strong cup of coffee.

Playing music, painting, and working on the current house. One of my homes was featured on HGTV!

Mostly from friends. Sometimes I see a provocative blurb in email, and I will follow a link.

Of course! (I illustrated it, too!): The Day He Opened the Coffin.

I get up around 6:30 every morning and write for two hours. I edit at night or in the bathtub after a writing session. I also have a full-time job, so that comes after my morning writing session. I always do the creative stuff first. It's so easy to wear oneself out after a stressful work day, and not have time to devote to the most important work--my writing. I am not a TV watcher, so I have a lot of creative time!

The first stories that stuck with me were from a collection of fairy tales, called The Albanian Wonder Tales. One of the stories, The Boy Who Took the Letters to the Dead, probably influenced my career the most. I have always been interested in worlds beyond our present existence, and derive a lot of pleasure from imagining how fate, time, and death can be viewed or approached in alternate ways.

I find an image that inspires me, usually pertaining to one of the main characters. Then I experiment with different fonts that are appropriate for the mood and time period. I have a background in graphic design, so cover design is something I love doing.

Jane Eyre - I love Gothics, strong women, and a love story that culminates on the very last page
Siddhartha - My struggle to find personal peace in a commercial world is never-ending
Interview with a Vampire - I fell in love with Anne Rice's brooding vampire with this book
The Bible - Believe it or not, the biblical world has inspired most historical and paranormal elements/questions in my books
Dracula by Bram Stoker - A Scot who wrote the definitive vampire story. What's not to love?

Honestly, I have little time for reading. But when I do read, I love biographical fiction the most. The last book I read was The Round House by Louise Erdrich.

My iPhone. It's always with me.

BookBub's 99-cent email campaign.

It's modern. Glass and aluminum. Minimalist lamp by Koncept. Two computers and a slick wireless printer. A watercolor of Greenen Castle, Ayrshire, Scotland hangs above it.

My family moved to Montana when I was nine. Living in a gorgeous but remote area provided me with a lot of creative time. Just getting around Montana involved hundreds of hours in a VW bus with no radio reception or CD player. (I spent a lot of time making up stories in my head as the scenery flew by.) Our television time was restricted (my parents made us pick two shows a week, and that was all we could watch). I now look back on that "hardship" as one of the greatest gifts my parents gave me. Because of my strict upbringing, I became a producer of creative content instead of a consumer.