Good Choice Reading: BLOG TOUR: Save My Soul by Zoe Winters Interview + Giveaway! (CLOSED)

1. Tell us a bit about yourself and your books.

I became a big fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, that’s how it all started. Besides just finding vampires suddenly attractive (ironically most of my heroes aren’t actually vampires), I became really intrigued with Joss Whedon’s way of storytelling, particularly his way of addressing character arc.

I love the way his characters all go through these extreme changes, from Willow going evil, to Spike going from slayer killer to slayer lover. Then there was Wesley who started out completely geeky and then became this sexy “dark” kind of character. Apologies to anyone who hasn’t seen the series and is totally lost on these references.

After seeing how Joss dealt with character development and change through several different shows (Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse), it became something I wanted to focus on and explore myself. I love the idea of having this world where you never really know where a character will end up or who they’ll become. It keeps it interesting.

In Whedon’s worlds, his good vs. evil are more clearly defined than mine. In the Pretverse, I like to keep everything pretty gray. Sure, in the story you’re in you think you know who the good guys and bad guys are, but a villain in one book will be the romantic lead in another and vice versa. It’s really about how everyone is the hero of their own story and how usually it isn’t about good vs. evil, but clashing agendas. Occasionally I write a Snidely Whiplash character but they rarely live long. ;)

The challenge with romance is to do this without breaking any HEA’s. Though sometimes I’ll have to temporarily upset someone’s apple cart for the greater good. Which makes me think I may be writing more urban fantasy with a very strong romance plot line. I’m not completely sure. This may make some readers a little leery, but if they stick with me through a few books where I do this, I think they’ll learn they can trust me to give them a satisfying story.

2. Did you always know that you wanted to write Paranormal Romance?

Nope. I tried several different genres. It wasn’t until after I watched Buffy, then got hooked on Buffy fanfic, then looked for books that were “the same but different” that I started to find my niche.

3. What is your favorite of all time Paranormal Creature?

I would have said vampire if you’d asked me during my Buffy obsession, and I still like them a lot. But I might like the incubus even more.

4. Is it hard for you to write a love scene? I am sure you've written ton, but I could imagine it gets a little hard to make each one different. How do you do it?

The challenge for me with a love scene is not going too freaky with it. I’m a bit of a freak, and so I try to keep it really tame in the fiction. Though I’m sure my fellow freaks can read the subtext between the lines. My focus here is on the story and the characters. I also try to stay in the emotions of the characters. How this makes them feel, not just physically, but emotionally. I also try to keep it short. I feel like in romance, long love scenes tend to break up the flow and pace of the story.

5. How many books can we expect in your Preternaturals series?

At this time I have 10 planned out for certain. But I’ve created the world so I can expand it indefinitely, so we’ll see how it goes and how I feel about it when I get that far.

6. Finally, out of your characters that you've ever created, who is your favorite and why?

Cain. I know I shouldn’t love him so much, but I do. He would tell me I’m a stupid trollop for being so drawn to him, but I can’t help it. Cain is, of course, the villain of Save My Soul. But in the next book, which I’m working on now, readers will get to see how he interacts with his own kind, which shows he’s got some considerable layers. I’m hoping readers will be as charmed with him as I am by book 4, which is his and Tam’s book. I can’t wait to write their story.

I love him because he’s a real smartass, and he makes me laugh. As dangerous as he is, he’s funny as hell. Sometimes it’s easy to forget he’s a demon with little general concern for human life.

Author Bio: Zoe Winters writes quirky and sometimes dark paranormal romance. She lives with her husband and two cats, and her favorite colors are rainbow and clear. For more information visit http://www.zoewinters.org or her blog at: http://zoewinters.wordpress.com.

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