Calista Fox talks about her release Object of Desire.

What went Between the Sheets of this book?  Either what was happening in your life when you wrote it, or what was happening with the book as you wrote it.

What a great question, considering I tried to blow up Belize and my hero/heroine in the first few chapters! Actually, what was happening in my life at the time I wrote the book was that I was working on a $15-18 billion (yes, with a "B"!) bid for a Department of Defense contract, and I either: a) was so frustrated, I wanted to blow stuff up, or b) so brain-fried that I NEEDED to blow stuff up to keep my life exciting as the extremely intense, laborious, two-year bid process drone on, or it could be c) both!

(P.S.—Nothing against Belize at all. It was an exciting and unique place to set the story!)

Why this story at this time?

Today's women identify with kick-ass heroines, and this story celebrates our independence, strength and liberation. Think of everything we, as women, do on a daily basis... All the hoops we jump through at work, while taking care of our households and our children and our families or significant others. I love how strong women are, and so I really enjoy writing heroines that don't let anything stand in their way. And that's exactly how Laurel Blackwood, my heroine, lives her life. Every single day.

Now, as for the hero in this story... Devon Mallory is a modern-day Han Solo. Sexy, of course. Cocky, you bet. A reluctant hero? Um, yeah. But at the end of the day, Devon is as solid as they come. And when he makes up his mind that he wants something--or someone!--come hell or water, he's going to go after it. I, for one, find that kind of determination and dedication sexy as hell!

Romantic Times Bookreviews (July '09 issue) referred to both characters as alpha, and it's quite true. Naturally, two alphas are going to butt heads. But when they finally agree to work together... look out! They'll move heaven and earth to win all the marbles!

Are you a visual writer?   Do you see scenes and characters in your head?   Or do you hear the characters voices?

All of the above, actually! I would say that about 90% of my stories come to me while I'm dreaming. Not that the dreams always make sense, mind you, but I can pull a few golden nuggets from the mental video streams and develop a plot and characters. Sometimes, I don't even have a full or even decent plot from a dream, but I have characters that are very alive and vivid in my head and I can build the story around them.

Lately, I've had the good fortune of having the stories write themselves. It's a strange phenomenon--one I once heard an author talk about and I couldn't begin to fathom what she meant. And then it happened. Sometimes, the characters really do take over, as Laurel and Dev did. And you can't fight them. You have to let them tell their story.

(Note to my parents, if you intend to commit me, please lock me away somewhere with an ocean view and be sure to bring my laptop to the padded cell... ;-))

What is your re-writing and editing process?  Do you let anyone read your work in progress before it goes to your editor? 

I believe very strongly in critique partners! If there's one thing I learned right out of the chute as a writer it's to always get a second or third (or fourth!) opinion! Sometimes what makes sense to you (especially when you're writing paranormals or suspense) doesn't make sense to others and you need to break it down more clearly for your readers. So I typically let my crit partners read the first three chapters of a story. If time permits, I'll send more chapters their way, but the first three are really critical to me in chartering the course for the rest of the book. I have to be really happy with them in order to move onto chapter four.

As for the editing process, I'm an editor by nature and profession, so I try really hard to deliver as clean a manuscript as possible. In fact, it's one of the reasons I managed to get published so quickly. My first novella (In the Heat of the Night in Secrets Volume 13, Red Sage Publishing, 2005) was written in two weeks. I submitted it and bam! it was on bookshelves months later! My editor had minimal edits. So much so, she was able to drop it into an anthology that was due out in July, when we'd only just contracted the story in late January of that same year!

So I've learned to self-edit all the way through the process. Like I said, I can't move past chapter three if I don't have those opening chapters nailed. And then I go back and edit the whole story after every two or three chapters, because things change, characters don't always follow your lead (i.e., they take over the story and it changes past events!), etc.

What keeps you going and motivated when life throws you a curveball?

I have a really big catcher's mitt?? LOL I guess because of the intense professional field in which I work, I've learned to take everything with a grain of salt in my writing career. I don't really believe in setbacks. Granted, I've been extremely fortunate in my writing career, but I'll admit, I haven't stepped off too many tall cliffs. I've done what works for me writing and promo-wise, and that has kept me grounded, sane and on a steady path. I try really hard not to get caught up in what my author friends are doing or how they're progressing or floundering, because they're not me, and I'm not them. We're all different, and we have different goals and desires and means of achieving success. I stay focused on me. What I'm doing today. Where I want to go tomorrow. How I'm going to get there. Of course I stumble, just like everyone else! But like with any professional career, you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and move on. This business is subjective. It can be brutal. And the best you can do is be true to yourself.

Were you an avid reader as a child?  What did you like to read?

Oh, Lord! *groaning* I was that kid who had reading certificates plastered all over the wall of the classroom! Every single year, I was the kid who read the most in my class--even during the summer months, while competing in gymnastics. My school had this great program for readers. They handed out a book list every couple of weeks and you checked off the ones you wanted to order and they were charged to your parents' account and delivered to your classroom the next week (yes, this was how we did it before Amazon.com!). Knowing what was in the school's library (and having already read the majority of those books that were of interest to me), I typically ordered six to eight books every go around... and devoured them when they arrived. Luckily, my parents are avid readers as well, and they supported my, um, addiction.

Do you have time to read now?  What authors do you read?

Unfortunately, my reading time is limited these days, though I do try to stay up on trends, and of course I have favorite authors I've followed for years--like Sydney Sheldon. I just ordered 15 of his bestsellers and am rereading them. I love him! His books are intriguing, sexy, mysterious, and they have a fantastic international flair that complements my passion for traveling the world.

I'm hooked on the Twilight series, too, and love Sandra Brown!

How important is self promotion in today's publishing market and what do you do to promote your books?

Wow, bit of a sore subject for me! Not that I mind promo... it's how I got my start in corporate writing. But at the same time... I didn't realize when I wrote my first book that completing the manuscript was just 1/3 of the battle. Next comes publishing, which luckily I tackled right off the bat. But then there's the promo. And as any author can attest to, it's a dog-eat-dog world out there when it comes to promoting your books! First of all, our readers are as avid as we are--they want to read everything they can get their hands on! But what to buy? Why pick a Calista Fox novel over a Nora Roberts novel? (As if that would ever happen! LOL)

Seriously, readers have X amount of dollars to spend and they have to decide, when they eye rows and rows of shelves at their local bookstore, which book will give them the most bang for their buck.

I'm a reader/consumer, too, so I can empathize. That might be why I typically throw everything but the kitchen sink into my books, to entice readers and try to give them a little "something extra." I appreciate where they're coming from, and I appreciate the fact that they have limited funds to spend on books, especially in this economy. So I try to work a little harder for them. I give away a lot of books. I put excerpts all over the place. I try to show readers (new, old and potential) that I'm writing for them. And that I appreciate them picking up my books.

So for me, the best promo is... writing better books. Continuing to learn and grow as an author and delivering an even better read than the last so that my readers (hopefully) feel I'm investing in them as much as they're investing in me.

What are you working on now?

Hee hee... Um, I suppose the more appropriate question would be "what aren't you working on now, Calista?" I have an overactive imagination, am fascinated with everything under the sun, and have the attention of gnat. So... I typically have eight to ten works in progress that I can switch to when a different mood strikes. I prefer not to push writing a story when I'm not in the mood for it, so I'll regroup, figure out what I really want to write, and move to that story. Lucky for me, I'm a very fast writer, so I can clean up my works-in-progress plate fairly quickly! (And add more!)

My most recent story, however, is book one in a five-book, single-author series of novellas, all set in Savannah and tied to the city's most controversial boutique, All Things Decadent. The first book is titled Simply Decadent:

Here's what it's about:

Cassandra Valentine may have a romantic name, but these days, romance is the farthest thing from her mind. Until devilishly handsome Seth Bryant whisks her away for a weekend of wicked pleasure...

 Seth is determined to win Cass over--body, heart and soul. And with the help of some pleasure-inducing props from Savannah's most talked about boutique, All Things Decadent, he just might succeed. But Cass is ambitious and career-oriented. A total control freak. Can she let go of the reins long enough to see that nothing about Seth's love could ever hold her back--and that the simple decadence of Seth's seduction might fulfill even greater desires? 

And an excerpt:

The stroke of the paintbrush was slow and languid, as though he had all the time in the world to drag the soft, crimson-colored bristles along her skin. The sensuous touch of the wet brush and the coolness of the creamy, cherry-scented body paint on her warm flesh made her tingle from head to toe.

As the long, continuous stroke slid down her neck, pausing to fill the hollow of her throat, Cassandra Valentine's eyelids fluttered closed.

She knew the trail Seth intended to blaze with his edible paint. Knew it would be a scorcher.

"You're enjoying this." His deep, intimate tone sent a ripple of excitement through her.

"Gloat all you want," she whispered, her voice sounding sultry even to her own ears. Her eyes remained closed, but she could picture hunky Seth in her mind. Tall, tanned and muscular, dressed in nothing but a pair of faded Levi's. Dark-as-night hair. Dazzling ocean blue eyes. A face and body that could have been sculpted by an artist.

Seth was easily the most gorgeous man she'd ever known. Or slept with.

He had a dark, edgy look that drove her wild. He was damn sexy. Sensuous. Sizzling.

No word seemed quite hot enough to describe Seth Bryant.

"I'm not gloating," he told her. "In fact, I'm not even going to belabor that little meltdown you had in the car. I know you hate to leave town in case someone needs to reach you. But it's a holiday weekend, babe. No one's doing business."

"I know it's a holiday weekend," she said on a sigh. "But the people I work for are still doing business. Emergencies crop up all the time, and I would hate to be out of town when Justin calls, needing me."

"Your boss has an entire team, Cass. Let him call someone else for a change." Seth's tone took on a hard edge she'd not heard before.

Cass sighed as her lids blinked open. The man had a point, it was useless to deny it. Working for Justin McCormick was no picnic--and he did tend to send her 911 text messages at all hours of the day and night with menial requests that hardly necessitated the urgency he applied to them. But she had to pay her dues, right?

"Hey," Seth said, drawing her from her thoughts. His tone was lighter, as though he'd caught the strain in his voice as well and wanted to amend it. Put them back on the track to sexual bliss. "Forget about work, sweetheart. For the next two days, you're all mine. I plan to worship every inch of this gorgeous body." His beautiful blue eyes instantly blazed with lust. "And I just might break the record for most orgasms delivered in a forty-eight-hour period."

He winked at her and a shiver of exhilaration chased up her spine. The thought of being Seth's "sex toy"--the recipient of all his erotic attention--made her wet. She really did want to banish thoughts of work and give herself over to every tantalizing sensation Seth evoked. Tough as it was to resist the urge to check her email. But she'd been good thus far. Hadn't consulted her Blackberry when they'd reached the cottage... and a stronger signal. Instead, Cass had agreed to strip down and lay on the bed, allowing Seth to play out whatever wicked game popped into his head.

Admittedly, she savored the tingling of her skin and the prickly feeling between her legs. She was enjoying the attention Seth paid her body.

She could do this.

What advice do you have for aspiring writers?  And how did you keep your spirits up until the first book was published?

My advice is that you can't pace yourself with or compare yourself to anyone else, and you can't ever give up, if you truly want to be published. As I mentioned previously, it's a subjective business. I remember my mom telling me (way before I even considered writing as a profession), that Steven King and John Grisham and Janet Evanovich and a multitude of other writers had sent their first book out to dozens of agents and editors with dismal results. Until they clicked with one. That's all it took. (And, if I recall correctly, it was Grisham who sold his book--five years later--to the first editor who'd read it and rejected it, and he hadn't changed a word of the manuscript in those five years!)

And if you're part of a writer's association and a local chapter (which I highly recommend!), keep abreast of the trends, but also find a way to be unique. What works for one author doesn't necessarily work for twelve or twenty or fifty others! If it's your dream... don't give up!

© 2009 Interview by BetweenYourSheets.com

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