MEET OUR BUDDY ROBIN
One of the most fun things I get to do is encourage up and coming writers. I met Robin Caroll (Robin Miller) way back when she emailed me to tell me how much she loved my Rock Harbor books. We became friends and I started mentoring her. I'm so proud of her and her writing! She is a FABULOUS writer and I'm thrilled she's ended up under Karen Ball's tutelage at Broadman and Holman. I recently got the chance to ask Robin about her writing life (and hair color) and want to share it with you today. Her new book DELIVER US FROM EVIL is fabulous! Now here's Robin:

You have a great mix of romance and suspense in your novels. How do you balance the two elements? Honestly, I don’t really plan a balance. When a story idea comes to me, I do a basic outline, but I don’t plot it out. I let the characters come alive in my mind and I tell their story. As a romantic at heart (shh, that’s a secret) I find every story has a romantic element. Sometimes I may go back and enhance that element, but the basis for the romance is already there.

I’ve said before that you “own” southern romantic suspense. Give us your worst and best Cajun secrets. Best Cajun secret is how to make a good roux, but I’ll be honest, my husband actually makes a better roux than I do—and he was born in California! LOL And for those of you who don’t know what a roux is, you have no idea what you’re missing…google it and salivate! lol The worst? Hmmm….I actually DO know some voodoo and hoodoo, which is terrifying.

What was the most fun (or scariest!) part of researching Deliver Us From Evil? The hardest part of researching the book was finding all the data on child trafficking for prostitution. That part was truly sickening for me, as a mother of three daughters to read. The most fun was the helicopter parts. My husband had taken helicopter flying lessons and we became great friends with the pilot, who took me up for rides. Knowing how it felt to sit in a helicopter in the air, without doors, during an auto-rotation….scariest thing ever, but sure came in handy in writing those scenes.

Most of us have a little piece of ourselves in our main character. What part of you is Brannon? LOL, as if you have to ask. Definitely her attitude and her speak-first, think-second mishaps. She’s also a bit of a control freak, and uh, believe it or not, I’ve been accused of that same trait. Shocking, I know. 

How did you come up with the name Roark? He’s a great hero. Come on, you can confess to reading Kathleen Woodiwiss back in your younger days. Oh wait, that’s a historical. So fess up. Did you actually read a historical once upon a time? Oh, puhleeze! I’ve read 3 authors hysterical—yours, C, part of Cara Putman’s, and Pam Hillman’s. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I survived, but I still avoid the genre. I came up with the name Roark because I knew a Roark in college who was a bit of a lovable rogue and I was good friends with his girlfriend. I always liked the name.

What gadget do you lust after right now? An Ipad, of course!  Of course, I also want a Mac desktop and MacBook, but right now, I’m REALLY drooling over the ipad.

So tell us the truth--do you tie up your kids so you can write? I know all the things you do. I think you’ve secretly cloned yourself. LOL…sometimes I wish…no, seriously, I’m a freak about my time management. (guess there’s that control-freak thing again) I have a gift in that I can multi-task very well (yes, I CAN talk on the phone and write a scene at the same time—ask Dineen Miller) and my brain works in a really odd way (no comment) in that I speed read, and certain things just “click” for me. Now if I COULD clone myself, the clone would be responsible for cleaning the house. I truly, truly DETEST housework. LOVE to cook, like to do home improvements, but can’t stand housework.

What color is your REAL hair? LOL…only you would ask. It’s gray. No kidding. And I’m not talking a pretty silver or pure white…it’s ugly, wiry, gray. I started getting gray at 18 (gotta love genetics, sigh). But, to try and answer your question…as a child I had dark, dark brown hair but with natural red pigments (both my grandmothers had beautiful auburn hair) but my mother had black hair and my father had dark hair as well.

Thanks for letting me drop in to visit with you girls. As always, I love hanging out with y’all.

Labels: Karen Ball, Robin Caroll, Robin Miller