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Erica Lucke Dean Interview 5/18/2013 10:20:51 PM
Debut author Erica Lucke Dean discusses her romance novel and the writing life! LTS: One of the most interesting and engaging authors I’ve met so far on Twitter has been the lovely and talented Erica Lucke Dean. When she is not taking care of her busy family, dealing with a ghost in the 90-year-old farmhouse, or corralling a menagerie of domestic beasties both furred and feathered, Erica is a romance and paranormal romance writer. Her debut novel, To Katie With Love was just released this spring! I’d like to begin by having you share a little information about yourself with our readers, Erica. What is your favorite thing to do when you are not writing?
ELD: When I’m not chasing chickens out of the house or dodging runaway pigs, hell-bent on my destruction, I’m a total karaoke nut. I try to sneak off to sing at least once a week. In fact, if they didn’t pry the microphone out of my fingers, I’d probably do it more often.
LTS: You gave up a successful career in banking to pursue writing full-time. Was it always your dream to become a published author?
ELD: Oh definitely! As far back as I can remember, I’ve been writing with the goal of being published. In fact, in junior high, I was publishing in an anthology of poetry. It was also my first experience with editing. They edited some of my favorite parts out of the poems so I didn’t keep the book. Now I wish I had. I wouldn’t even know where to look for it.
LTS: I had a chance to read an excerpt from your debut novel, To Katie With Love and I enjoyed how I felt like I was eavesdropping on some girlfriends! What was the inspiration behind this story and can you tell us a little bit about your protagonist, Katie James?
ELD: As I said, I’m obsess…I mean, quite fond of doing karaoke. I was in a karaoke bar one night with my husband. He hates karaoke, so he was playing a game on his phone while I was people watching until it was my turn to sing. I found myself fascinated by the lack of hot guys in the room. Not that I was shopping, mind you, but I fully expected to see at least one guy with the ladies all around him. The odds say at least ONE guy in the room should be attractive, right? Well, nope. And it made me wonder what I would do if I was a single girl stuck in a room full of guys, none of which could catch my attention. So I grabbed a bar napkin and borrowed a pen from the waitress (ok, so maybe I stole it…but I gave it back before we left) and I started scribbling down chapter one. Once I got back to work on Monday, the story had faded off into the distance until something at the bank happened that made me realize my poor lonely girl at the bar would fit in perfectly with the nutty people I worked with at the bank. I wrote the book in three months. Often times writing at my desk while I was supposed to be working.
LTS: Without giving away too much, can you reveal what’s in store for the readers when they crack open To Katie With Love?
ELD: Readers can expect zany characters, humor, a lovely romance, and a few twists and turns. Our girl Katie is a shy banker obsessed with romance novels who falls head over heels in love with her rich, mysterious client, Cooper Maxwell. But Katie can’t seem to leave well enough alone and sets out to discover what Cooper’s hiding. And she might not like what she finds out.
LTS: The road to publication is difficult at the best of times. What advice do you have for an author struggling to be published by a traditional publishing house?
ELD: I would just tell them to keep writing. Perfect your craft. Keep querying. And don’t rule out the smaller publishers. I absolutely love my publisher. Red Adept may not be “big six”…yet…but they don’t skimp AT ALL on the final product. I’m very happy I trusted them with my “baby.”
LTS: Can you share that moment when you sold your story to Red Adept Publishing?
ELD: I queried Red Adept in November and had to wait while it went through at least three acquisitions editors before hearing back from the publisher. She called me two weeks before Christmas to tell me she was interested. It was the most amazing piece of news ever. I was delighted, to say the least. I think I did a little dance and asked my husband if he still thought I should hang up my keyboard and take up a more productive “hobby.” He decided I might make something of this writing thing after all.
LTS: What is the most important lesson you’ve learned on the road to publication?
ELD: I have learned that the road is long and arduous. The terrain is too often fraught with disappointment after disappointment, but the end of the journey truly makes it all worth it. I think a lot of people throw in the towel and take another (often easier) path, or just give up writing all together, and I can understand where they’re coming from, but for me, that moment when someone said, “your book is exactly what we’re looking for,” made it that much sweeter.
LTS: On the subject of writing styles, are you a plotter or pantser?
ELD: Well, I’m a pantser by nature, but I do try to at least go in with an idea of how to get back out. I’ve even been known to make a rough outline of what should happen the whole way through. But in the end, I let the characters guide me as we go. Sometimes that original idea gives way to something way better, and you have to be ready to grab onto that last minute inspiration and just go with it.
LTS: Some authors meditate, others need to fuel up on coffee or listen to music. Do you have any rituals, ones that can be shared with the readers, that you must do before you hunker down for a writing session?
ELD: I’m a spur of the moment person. I do what feels right when I write. Sometimes I listen to a playlist on repeat. Sometimes I disappear into the quiet solitude. Sometimes I like being in a bustling coffee shop where I can just soak up the ambience. It really depends on the mood I’m trying to create on the page. I’ve even been known to “talk” it out with a peer over the phone. Tossing ideas back and forth until something sticks. But it’s all good. As long as you’re making progress, right?
LTS: At one time or another, most writers hit the wall and their work stalls because of the dreaded writer’s block. What do you do to get around or over this mental wall to resume writing?
ELD: Sometimes I just put it down and focus on reading for a while. Reading a good book will inevitably restore those creative juices. If that doesn’t work, I pick up a new project and just play with it. Anything to get the brain working in that direction again. I don’t think there’s any one trick that works. Sometimes you just have to keep writing crap until you work through the cobwebs. Just don’t give up.
LTS: Who is your favourite author and how has he/she inspired you to write or influenced your writing style or choice of genre?
ELD: I get asked this a lot, and the answer is always the same. I can’t choose a favorite author any more than I can choose a favorite color, or favorite song. I like so many for so many different reasons. I read anything from Shakespeare to Stephen King to Stephanie Meyer. I love to read, and I’ve even been known to read fan fiction from time to time. Or the cereal box…the shampoo bottle.
LTS: What do you foresee in your future over the next five years and do you hope to branch out from romance into other genres? Can your fans expect a sequel to To Katie With Love in the near future?
ELD: I definitely see me writing more than just the romance/chick lit over the next five years, but for now, I have a paranormal romance coming out next year. I also have an angsty new YA project I’m collaborating on with a friend. Then the sequel to Katie. So I’m not sure what the future will bring after that, but that’s only because I haven’t written it yet.
Thank you for taking time out of your crazy busy schedule to share with us, Erica! I’ll catch you on Twitter!
For more information about Erica Lucke Dean and her stories, check out:
Website: www.ericaluckedean.com
Follow Erica on Twitter: .ericaluckedean
Facebook www.facebook.com/ericaluckedean
Where to buy the book: Amazon.com and BN.com
