Cheryl Brooks

Hi Cheryl. Thanks for agreeing to chat with Enchanting Reviews about your books. We are so excited about getting to know you better.

1. How long have you been writing? How did you go from writer to published author?
I've been writing off and on for the past thirty years. I've always needed a creative outlet of some kind, and though I've done several other things over the years, writing is the one I always seem to come back to eventually. Getting published wasn't easy-and still isn't!-but, to be honest, I think it was more of a fluke than anything. I'd been rejected by agents and publishers galore, but I'd never sent SLAVE to anyone because no one seemed to be interested in erotic paranormals. Then I saw an article in the Romance Writer's Report that Sourcebooks was accepting erotic and paranormal romances, so I sent this one in, and pretty much forgot about until the editor called.

2. Why Sci-fi romance?
I've always loved a good romance, but I also enjoy science fiction. I've been a Star Trek fan since grade school, loved Star Wars from the first moment of the film, and, more recently, never missed an episode of the television series, Farscape, so it was very logical for me to want to combine the two.

3. What sparked the idea for SLAVE: THE CAT STAR CHRONICLES?
I was given a book as a gift that was about a woman posing as a slave in a Dominant/Submissive society. Since the idea of a woman being dominated by a man does absolutely nothing for me, it wasn't a book I would have chosen for myself, but I read it anyway, thinking all the while that it would be so much more fun if only the man had been the slave and the woman the tough guy. So that's what I wrote. Of course, Jack isn't all tough, and Cat isn't the least bit submissive, but that was the general premise.

4. You created whole new worlds in SLAVE - what do you like best about the world building process?
I enjoy the freedom to let my imagination run wild, and in the realm of science fiction there are very few limits to what you can create. Life can take on any form, societies can be based on any premise, and technology can reach any level.

5. Can you describe the story in three words?
Fun, exciting, and sexy!

6. What are your favorite qualities about Jack?
She's strong, determined, and can cuss like a sailor, but turns to mush with Cat. Some readers have felt that these characteristics were inconsistent with one another, but in a romance, even the tough guy has to have a softer side.

7. What are your favorite qualities about Cat?
He's sweet, incredibly sexy, and he can purr! I love his long, curly hair-that shaved-head look turns me off at first glance-and since I always thought Mr. Spock was cool, Cat had to have his ears and eyebrows! He also has a few “special” qualities that I think any woman could appreciate!

8. Did the characters surprise you as you wrote or did they behave themselves?
Quite often characters will take on a life of their own and say things I don't expect, and that probably happened with these two. Sometimes they didn't behave, and, of course, that part got edited.

9. What was your favorite scene to write?
That's a tough question! You'd think it would be a love scene, but they are actually much more difficult to write than you might think, and most romance novels take sex much too seriously. I like a little humor thrown in with all the steamy stuff, so I'd have to say my favorite scene to write was when Jack gets bitten by a mosquito and passes out-at a very inopportune moment!

10. What's next for you?
WARRIOR is next, due in October 2008, followed by ROGUE and LOVER, both due out in the spring of 2009-if I ever get them finished! I'm in the middle of writing LOVER and re-writing ROGUE right now, so who knows? There are supposed to be two more books in the series after that, but just when they'll happen, I have no idea at this point.

Cheryl, thank you so much for answering our questions. We can't wait to review more work from you in the near future!

Interviewed by Lisa
June 2008