Kate St. James talks about "Good Vibrations" in Red Sage Secrets Vol. 21

Hi, today I'm happy to say we have Red Sage author Kate St. James as a guest here.

Kate St. James lives in the Pacific Northwest with her adoring family. She keeps trying to kick them out, but they're sticking like glue...for reasons she can't figure. It's not like she's a model wife and mother. Or is she? Therein lies one of the great mysteries of Kate's generation.

An avid reader since childhood, Kate loves spending her days writing about the hot men and adventurous women populating her head. When she's not engrossed in her fictional worlds, you can find her chasing her hound in the hills above an azure lake, ignoring the smoke alarms blaring from the kitchen, or endlessly renovating her house.

Nicole North: Hi, Kate, welcome!! Please tell us about "Good Vibrations" in Red Sage Secrets Volume 21, Primal Heat.

Kate St. James: "Good Vibrations" is an erotic romantic comedy about a woman who decides to swear off sex while she gets her MBA so her grades don't suffer like they always have in the past when she's mixed men and her studies. Then her favorite out-of-town customer shows up as she's about to give notice at the sex-toy shop she's been managing for her vacationing aunt. Gage is only in the city once a month, so this might be Lexi's last chance to see him...and her last chance to indulge her hidden wild streak before she straps on that chastity belt. So she goes for it, not realizing Gage is moving home--to her city--and has no intention of settling for a short-term affair.

NN: Sounds like a great, sexy plot! What inspired you to write this story?

KSJ: The title popped into my mind while I was writing another story in which the heroine bemoaned that her "Mr. Good Vibrations" vibrator had run out of batteries. Immediately, I thought, "Wow, Good Vibrations would make a great title for an erotic story." So I jotted down the idea, which at that point consisted of the title, the setting--a sex shop (I wanted plenty of vibrators at my heroine's disposal ), and the heroine's name. Then I stuffed the "idea germ" away. Several months later, I'd hit a roadblock with my writing and so decided to pull out all the stops and write my first erotic novella by the seats of my pants, revising and researching along the way. It probably sounds strange to say that a line in another manuscript inspired this novella, but it's not uncommon for me to come up with entire plots based on a title or a first line, which is essentially what happened with "Good Vibrations."

NN: Interesting! I recall doing that one time myself. I love it when a whole story comes from a title. Please tell us about your favorite character in this story and why he/she is your favorite.

KSJ: I'd have to say it's Lexi O'Brien, the heroine, because she isn't afraid to go after what she wants even when she's suffering self-doubts. And she does suffer them. She thinks she's too top-heavy and plain Jane. Now, I personally don't have any experience with being "top-heavy," but when my heroine began complaining about her big boobs, who was I to dissuade her? Like most women, she sees the worst in herself physically, and I found it interesting to write from the vantage point of a character who has such a different life experience than I do. At the same time, although she's practical, she can find humor in almost any situation, which also appeals to me. Plus, she lusts after Gage, who is heaven on legs. So, she's smart.

NN: I can't wait to meet both characters. Which element of this story was hardest for you and why?

KSJ: Researching the police procedural aspect of the plot. When I started writing the story, I had no idea the cops were going to show up mid-way through the story. But there they were, and I had to stop writing merrily along and research what they would say and do. Research is always the stickler for me, because I get lost in it. I can research for days on a minor plot point. I don't know why. It's like I need to learn everything I can about a subject so I can toss 98% of that knowledge out the window and just keep what I need. Luckily, I have a good friend with a retired cop husband, so between the two of them and a call to the police department, I think--hope!--I got the cop scenes right.

NN: What do you wish you'd known before becoming published?

KSJ: That's a hard question to answer, because it took me so long to become published that I haven't really been surprised by anything that's happened to me on the published side of the fence. At least not so far. Remember what I said about research? Well, when I was unpublished, if my intent was to become published, then it made sense to me to learn as much about my craft and the industry as I could. I learned to develop a rhino hide about rejections. I learned to just keep soldiering on. That the only person who could stop me from achieving my writing dreams was myself. That I had to believe in myself even when it felt like only family members and critique partners believed in me--that no one in the publishing industry ever would. I strongly believe that persistence is half the battle in the publishing game, and considering somewhere along the way I forgot how to give up (honestly, I think I just grew too many stupid cells and forgot!!), clearly the belief in persistence helped me. It got to the point where, when I got rejections, my writing friends were more upset than I was. I just became very practical and stubborn about the whole thing. This business isn't for the faint-hearted. Don't give up. Believe in yourself. Strap on blinders and just keep improving your craft. And don't be afraid to try something new.

NN: Fantastic advice!! What's next for you?

KSJ: I have two more novellas coming from Red Sage Secrets! "Exes & Ahhhs" in Secrets Volume 26: Bound by Passion will appear in December 2008, and is about a bakery owner and her silent partner ex-lover. And I just sold "Kiss Me at Midnight," the story of two late-night L.A. talk show co-hosts, for a Secrets volume slated for 2009, although I don't know the month or volume number yet. I'm currently marketing an erotic single title, and I plan to write more erotic novellas in the New Year. I love writing for Secrets, and I hope to have a long and successful career with them. I also publish non-erotic romantic comedies under another name, and my work-in-progress is a single title romantic comedy/mystery I plan to market in the spring. So I'm keeping very busy!

NN: Wow, you are busy! And congratulations on the additional sales!! Thanks again, Kate, for being a guest here! We've enjoyed learning more about you and your stories.

Here is the book trailer video featuring all the stories in Secrets Volume 21, Primal Heat.




Kate's websites: http://www.katestjames.com/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/katestjames