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Faith Hunter Talks About NOT Writing Romance

 

Faith Hunter Talks About NOT Writing Romance

 

 

 

 

 

Faith Hunter Talks About NOT Writing RomanceBroken Soul by Faith Hunter
Series: Jane Yellowrock #8
Published by Roc on October 7th 2014
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Amazon | B&N | Goodreads
Jane Yellowrock is a vampire killer for hire—but other creatures of the night still need to watch their backs....

When the Master of the city of New Orleans asks Jane to improve security for a future visit from a delegation of European vampires, she names an exorbitant price—and Leo is willing to pay. That’s because the European vamps want Leo’s territory, and he knows that he needs Jane to prevent a total bloodbath. Leo, however, doesn’t mention how this new job will change Jane’s life or the danger it will bring her and her team.

Jane has more to worry about than some greedy vampires. There’s a vicious creature stalking the streets of New Orleans, and its agenda seems to be ripping Leo and her to pieces. Now Jane just has to figure out how to kill something she can’t even see….

 

I get asked about romance for Jane Yellowrock all the time. And I get it. I do. Romance sells. Romance is addictive. We all know it, we all desire it in our lives, and we all want our favorite literary heroes to get lucky, get happy, and get connected in every way possible with his-or-her soul mate. Every writer knows this, every writer wants to sell books, so every writer should write romance. Right?

 

Eh…maybe. Among other things, I write thrillers in a paranormal setting, thrillers with a dash of horror and paranormal characters, also called Urban Fantasy. Writing romance into any thriller can be hard. Writing romance into Jane Yellowrock’s life is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Especially pacing romance (and sex?) into Jane’s life, into her long-running series, and into a character-life already filled with action. Oy!

 

Jane started out as newcomer to New Orleans and as she met the men that surrounded the vamps (and met the vamps themselves) sexual interest was bound to spark. But Jane is choosy, not a bed hopper, which is boring to me, so it took some time for her to pick a guy to let into her life. And then he hurt her. Humans hurt each other from time to time. Broken hearts and pain are a part of life. But Jane (and the men around her) are growing, developing, changing, so finding Mr. Right has to happen. But developing a man into the kind of Mr. Right that Jane needs isn’t as easy as it sound. This Mr. Right needs to be able to survive all the havoc of a rogue-vampire hunter’s life. Lemme tell you, this has been hard. HARD!

 

In case you read as many books as I do each year and can’t bring it to mind, Jane is a Cherokee Skinwalker, a rogue-vamp hunter currently living in modern-day New Orleans, who shares her body with the soul of a mountain lion she took inside during accidental black magic when she was five years old. Back in the 1800s. It’s a lot to take in, I know. My mom asks if I was on drugs when I came up with Jane Yellowrock and Beast. I think she’s worried about me.

 

Back to a long running series, sex, romance and Jane. Penguin/ROCs/theHouse (yes that’s a joke) bought the rights to publish the Yellowrock series. Book eight, BROKEN SOUL, is the latest. And yes, there might be as many as 15 books by the time I run out ideas for her, assuming things continue well and readers and fans keep buying the stories. On Jan. 7, BLACK ARTS hit number 16 (tied with 15) on the NYT bestseller list, and the publisher has high hopes for book nine hitting the list too.

 

If I get the romance right.

 

I’ve said it before: Jane is very picky when it comes to men. Her Beast not so much. Jane wants (in some secret part of her heart) the white picket fence, the human family with the 2.5 kids (and that is sorta scary, that people want half a kid, but that’s for another post), the dog and cat, and the life of peace she has never known. Beast informs her, regularly, that “Big cats do not mate for life.” Beast just wants to get laid. Often. By the strongest predator (or predators) around. There is some major internal conflict there, which has been getting worse, though so far Jane is in charge of the mating rituals. So far.

 

I don’t write erotica. I can’t keep up with all the body parts in a wild sex scene. (Where did that extra hand come from? Wait. Which one is wearing the corset?) And I don’t really write romance. I write thrillers set in modern world with magic, vamps, weres and witches and various other magical beings. And romantic tension. And, well, yeah—romance. Slow building romance. And in the book that comes out in October 2014—BROKEN SOUL—yeah. Some sex. Jane finally gets lucky. On page. I’m giving my mom heart palpitations.

 

 

 

 

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