Author: Elizabeth Amber

by: Tammie King

Date: 12/5//07

Hello Elizabeth,

The girls of Night Owl Romance are pleased that you have granted us an interview

We would love to get to know you.

Could you please start by telling us a little about yourself?

I’m Elizabeth Amber, a new author with Kensington Aphrodisia, with one book of a trilogy under my belt so far—Nicholas, The Lords of Satyr. In this erotic historical paranormal romance trilogy set in the heart of Tuscany’s centuries-old wine country, three half-Satyr brothers receive a letter that sends them in search of three endangered half-Faerie brides.

If you could be one of your characters – Who would you be? And why?

I’d be Jane, the heroine in Nicholas, The Lords of Satyr. She’s smart and loyal, has unusual powers, and eventually gets to marry Nicholas, a sexy alpha male who’s the head of the wealthy satyr family. He’s charismatic, sexually uninhibited, and he decides she’s the one for him. How lucky can a woman get?

What’s your favorite genre to read?

Romance, non-fiction, and history. I got hooked on Jane Austen, the Brontes, and Margaret Mitchell in my early teens and never looked back.

Can you please give us a sneak peek at any of your upcoming books?

I just posted an erotic excerpt of Raine (book 2, March 2008) at http://www.elizabethamber.com/excerptRaine.html

And here’s a blurb:

Handsome, stoic, middle brother Raine has been wed before to a wife who was disgusted by his carnal needs. Each month at Moonful, these half-Satyrs change physically, becoming more powerfully potent. They’re driven by the darker side of their natures to indulge in a nightlong ritual in a sacred gathering place ringed with ancient statues.
Though Raine wants no part of another marriage, he searches out the second half-Faerie, Jordan, in Venice. She turns out to be far, far different than he could ever have imagined, and she is living a dangerous lie.

Raine’s traumatic childhood and a bad marriage have closed him to the idea of giving or receiving love. As the winegrape harvest begins, Jordan slowly reawakens his heart. But he finds himself competing with another nightmarish suitor who has gained an evil hold over this woman he is coming to love.

Please tell us what you have planned next?

I’ve finished the first two books in the trilogy. Two more to go. The first three books each involve one brother. The fourth book is an anthology about other two family members mentioned in  book 1—Jane’s sister Emma and Vincent, her son by Nicholas.

Who is your perfect hero?  And why?

I love handsome, smart, troubled alpha males like Nicholas and Raine, but these guys live in the early to mid 1800s, when men had legal and moral power over women. I’d find it hard to live the rest of my life with them, but they’re exactly the kind of sexy, intriguing heroes I’m looking for in a book I read or write.

What do you do for inspiration?

If I’m stuck, I turn away from writing and do something very different to unlock my mind. Swimming and walking the treadmill at the gym free my mind up to think about my book and nothing else.  I keep a small notebook at the end of my lap lane and with me on the treadmill so I can write down any ideas I have.

Is there a genre of book you would like to write but haven't yet?

I’m interested in writing urban fantasy someday, but with my own non-vampire spin on it.

What kind of research do you do for your books? Do you enjoy the research process?

I enjoy it a little too much and can get sidetracked. In college, I studied Greco-Roman art history and became fascinated with the urns and frescoes depicting the winegrape rituals involving Bacchus/Dionysus, so I used that as the basis for the mythology-building in my trilogy. I’ve spent time at archeological digs and am a museum junkie, so I draw on that experience as a resource as well.

When did you first decide to submit your work? Please, tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step.

Nicholas was the first novel I completed.  I told very few people I was writing it and I wrote it without worrying about who might publish it. I concentrated only on what I wanted to write and polished it. Then I went to an RWA conference and learned that publishers were seeking hot romance. Perfect timing.

What was your first published novel and when was it published?

Nicholas, The Lords of Satyr was the first novel I completed.  I sent it to Kensington Aphrodisia where it landed in Audrey LaFehr’s pile.  It took six months for her to find it, but then she phoned with an offer.  Nicholas was published in 2007 and was the first Aphrodisia title to make the Nielsen BookScan list of top selling romances, and is now in a third printing.

What would be the best way for readers contact you? Do you have a website? Email address? MySpace site? Blog? Message Board? Group?

Book excerpts and a bio:   www.elizabethamber.com
Email:  elizabethamber1@aol.com 
Myspace:   http://www.myspace.com/elizabethamberromance
E-newsletter (contests and updates):  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ElizabethAmber/

Thank you for this opportunity!

Interviewed by Tammie King

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