But First, Coffee: Reader Questions

So go get your coffee, tea or whatever you have, and settle in for a quick chat. It’s Monday morning, and quite frankly it feels like Monday. I got my hair done yesterday, and I am loving the red. By summer it should be gleaming like garnets. Saturday, I got my nails done. These are two of the few activities where I actually get to sit back and let somebody pamper me. My life is mostly work, which I’m not complaining about — I love my work, but sometimes I just need to take a breath and let somebody do something for me.

I’m going to answer a couple reader questions today.

The first one is from Jenne. She asks: “Do you get pedicures, too?”

Honestly, I wish I did, but no. Any pedicures I get, I have to give myself. My nail lady is so booked up that she has a waiting list for pedicure clients and I’m on it. I could look elsewhere but would prefer to wait for her.

Diana asks: “Are your characters based on yourself or people you know? I notice many of your main characters are similar in looks to you. Are some of their habits and quirks similar as well?”

This is a common question and I answer it a lot. Yes, a lot of them have dark hair, but there aren’t all that many shades to choose from. I love dark hair so yeah, a number of my main characters do have black or brown hair. But, the fact is I don’t base any characters on anybody I know, except for myself…to a degree. Most of my main characters have a few traits in common with me, but nobody is actually a replica of anybody I’ve met. As far as the quirks — well, yes, you will notice that a lot of caffeine flows through my books. That’s definitely based on me. I also love corsets and makeup, so characters who are into corsets and makeup get that from me. And the characters who really don’t want kids are definitely like me. I’ve never had any desire to have kids unless they have four feet, fur, and meow. I’m SO not a baby person, unless it happens to be a kitten or a puppy. Or a baby goat — I love baby goats.

Jennifer asks: Which of the men did you possibly base off of Samwise?

Well, there’s a little of him in a number of the heroes, but none of them in particular.

So there you go, a few answers to a few questions. I hope you have a wonderful day, and an even better week.