CAPTIVATED
by
National Bestselling
Author
Lauren Dane
Lauren, I am completely over the moon that you have dropped by today. For those not yet familiar with you (crossing fingers that my readers become devoted fans after meeting you) please share a bit about yourself.
Here’s my official type bio thingy: The story goes like this: While on pregnancy bed rest, Lauren Dane had plenty of down time so her husband took her comments about “giving that writing thing a serious go” to heart and brought home a secondhand laptop. She wrote her first book on it before it gave up the ghost. Even better, she sold that book and never looked back.
Today Lauren is a New York Times and USA
These days it’s more some other show on Nick or Disney, or worse, the sounds of bickering children, LOL, but the concept still applies J
As a writer, what makes you tick?Thanks so much for having me! Um, well like a lot of writers I’m slightly crazed and my head is constantly filled with stories and characters demanding to be on a page.
Why do you write? It’s the best job I’ve ever had. I get to make stuff up all day long! I love building worlds. I love watching my characters come to life on the page. I love the entire process from glimmer of an idea to the book ending up on the shelf.
Name one eye-opening thing you learned from your book research. I learned how to make silver bullets, that was fun. For CAPTIVATED, I did research on virology and the transmission of super virulent diseases. That stuff gave me nightmares for weeks.
Do you have a favorite motto? BICHOK – Butt in chair, hands on keyboard.There are others that are far less clean, so I’ll skip those, LOL
What is one of your favorite book covers, your own or someone else’s? I’ve really been so lucky with my covers. It’s hard to pick a favorite! Laid Bare is up there near the top, along with Goddess With A Blade.
What would readers be surprised to learn about you? I’m sort of shy until I get to know you. Really. People don’t believe it, but it’s totally true.
What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever learned by Googling your name? While I’m always so grateful for the lovely things readers say about me and to me, sometimes there are things people say and do that disturb me greatly. So I really just try not to google myself at all. That way lies madness.
If you could go backward or forward in time which would you chose? Why? I used to think I’d be happy as a flower child, but really, right now is best. My kids are here, my husband is here. This fabulous career is here. In the times before women had less rights, so strike that. I don’t want to go to any time before indoor plumbing, toilet paper or antibiotics either. I’m a wuss that way.
Lauren, please share with us more about your latest erotic futuristic romance, CAPTIVATED, the third chapter in your Phantom Corps series which just released from Berkley Heat.
CAPTIVATED is the last in a several book long story arc about two ‘Verses at war. One, the Federated Universes is more democratic (ish) and where our heroes and heroines hail from and the other is the Imperial Universes, which is more fascistic and undemocratic. Over the Phantom Corps series, a small group of special ops soldiers has been working to end the threat the bad guy (Ciro Fardelle) poses to the Federated ‘Verses.
As the book opens, Hannah Black, a scientist and doctor who has been held in near total isolation for almost a year is saved by one of the heroes, Vincenz Cuomo (who also happens to be the bad guy’s son). As the story goes on, Hannah begins to heal and find herself again and in doing so, they find out why her captors held her for so long and she becomes a key to the big problem. Oh and there’s lots of love with a big, dramatic backdrop.
The heart of the book is three wounded, messed up people finding their fit with these other two people who love and accept them flaws and all. But who also make each other want to be the very best they can be.
I noticed that your Phantom Corps series is an erotic and futuristic. What is it about writing in the futuristic genre that piqued your curiosity? I love writing futuristics! I can create a world bound here or far away. It can be based on earth, like my Federation Novels/Phantom Corps, or I can create something wholly new and alien. It’s a lot like paranormals in that sense. I love being totally in control of my world, though of course that means there’s no one to blame but me if it goes wrong ;)
Why write erotica? What is about this genre that also sparks your writer’s curiosity? I don’t write erotica but romance that is erotic – the difference between the two being that it’s the romance that is central and the sex is part of that, rather than the journey of one character via sex. I write the stories that come to me. Sometimes they’re steamier than others. It’s really about the characters and what stories they need to tell and how that goes. Sex and sexuality are part and parcel of who people are, it can really give the reader an intimate and raw glimpse into who the people on the page are.
As an author creating your very own universe that you control has to one of the biggest highlights in writing. Curiosity is killing me. How did you come up with the Imperial Universe?
Both ‘Verses in this series are not good v bad necessarily. There are fundamental flaws within the Federated Universes, it is NOT a democracy, though it’s far more democratic”ish” and free than the Imperial Universes are. It’s more a clash of overall values. So I took some old school, Earth examples through history of more fascistic/imperialistic governments/places and put my own spin on it.
My futuristics are anachronistic. They’re meant to be read in some ways with a historical lens, the language can be more formal because of that. But both ‘Verses are also old school in that sense.
Lauren, while you were writing Hannah, Julian and Vincenz’s story was there a scene that popped out the most? For Captivated it’s the beginning and the very end. I don’t want to spoil the end, but the beginning is when Hannah is still held against her will. She’s not quite all there. She’s afraid to hope Vincenz is real, but then she’s got to gather what wits she has to get out. To me, it’s really the core of who she is. The end has a scene that wrecked me when I wrote it and even when I went back to edit it I cried.
Lauren, what is more difficult to write: an intense sexual scene or a heart-wrenching emotional scene? Why? Every book is different. To me, a sex scene is wasted page space if it doesn’t convey something and because it’s so intimate, it’s usually an emotionally wrenching scene in some way so often times it’s the same thing. Any time a character unravels, or reveals herself in some painful way it’s difficult. You want to get it right. You want to reveal whatever you’re trying to convey in the right way. Not too fast, not too much, not in a way that your character wouldn’t do. And also, over the writing, I begin to really feel for my characters, they become real to me and sometimes the stuff I put them through means I’m writing the scene through tears. If that happens that usually means I’ve nailed it.
When you were writing “CAPTIVATED” did you have music playing in the background? If yes, what type? Does music play an intricate part in your writing? Music is a very important part of every book I write. I create tracklists for the writing and also for the editing. Captivated had a lot of Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Etta James and Eagles of Death Metal. It’s a story that is dark and jagged but also has its lighter moments.
Which do you find is most important to you as a writer, voice or story? Why? To me, voice is always the most important thing. The way a writer tells a story, how she tells it, the words she uses and the scenes she sets is what always sucks me in. Some authors have voices that suck me in every time, no matter the genre or story, like Nalini Singh for instance. After that, it’s all about the people on the page. I want characters to be fully realized. They don’t have to be likeable, but they do have to be compelling.
Lauren, please share with desperate readers where they can connect with you in cyber world. =) My website: www.laurendane.com I also have a wee twitter addiction so I’m @laurendane over there and facebook www.facebook.com/LaurenDane
I know this is a difficult question with there being so many amazing authors out there to choose from but who are some of the GOT-TO-HAVE authors in your TBR pile? Carly Phillips, Megan Hart, Lara Adrian, Nalini Singh, Chelsea Cain (this is just in my TBR pile, LOL)
What’s next in the works for you? When can readers expect to see it out on shelves in their local bookstores? Next up after CAPTIVATED is CHAOS BURNING, my next paranormal romance in the Bound by Magick series out from Berkley
Lauren thanks so much for stopping by and chatting with Saucy & Sinful and RCJR eZine readers and myself; it has really been a blast getting to know more about you and your books.
Thank you again for having me!
Overview
Vincenz Fardelle, exiled son of the Supreme Leader of the Imperialist Universe, has spent much of the last ten years working to stop the threat his father poses. But he’s not alone in his quest. Julian Marsters has lost his best friend and countless others in the war and has made vengeance his only goal. In each other, Julian and Vincenz find not only like minds, but kindred spirits.
However unexpected their relationship, everything changes for Vincenz and Julian when Hannah Black comes into their lives. Having been captured and held in near total isolation by imperialist troops, their immediate response is to protect her.
Emotionally shattered but resilient, Hannah rebuilds herself. Because of the warm safety she finds in the arms of Julian—and Vincenz—she becomes someone harder, stronger and bent on preventing the Imperialists from harming anyone else.
For the two men, wrestling with their passionate feelings for Hannah is only the beginning. War is about to send all three into harm’s way and an equally dangerous secret could tear them apart.
~ CONTEST~
RCJR eZine and Saucy and Sinful are proud to present an extraordinary romance author that we absolutely adore. USA Today's bestselling author Lauren Dane i incredible talent and nothing says it better than her latest and final Phantom Corps series with CAPTIVATED which released yesterday by Berkeley Heat, an imprint of Penguin Groups.
THE PRIZE: Two (2) copies of CAPTIVATED are up for grabs.
![]()
![]()
![]()
TO ENTER: Leave a comment for Lauren Dane including your email address
(Email address are required for ALL entries.)
***
*Connect with RCJR eZine at:
***
Contest is open to ALL
It will runs until May 7,2012
I will contact the winners directly on May 8, 2012
HAPPY READING! =)