Camryn Rhys grew up on the border of Canada and the US, and still hasn’t decided which country to call home. She splits her time between the Alberta and Montana Rocky Mountains, with friends and family in both beautiful locations. After running her own restaurant for several years and acquiring advanced degrees in writing, foodie romance seemed the only logical option. When she’s not watching the Food Network, she’s reading a romance novel, or if absolutely necessary, working as a consultant. Someone has to put really excellent food on the table.
Q: Welcome, Camryn! Please tell us about your upcoming release. (By the way, I love your yummy cover!)
A: My first erotic novella, The Barn Dance, releases on June 3rd from Breathless Press. This book is sort of a mash-up of the western/cowboy romance and a foodie erotic romance. The entire story revolves around a young woman who is faced with losing her job as a ranch cook. She makes a deal to save her job, letting Leo into her kitchen, and years of hard romantic history comes with him. Her hard-fought walls start to come down as she and Leo bake together.
Q: Sounds fantastic and fun! What inspired this story?
A: I love to bake and cook. I tend to write some kind of food element into every story I write, and when I heard Breathless was looking for cowboy erotics, I had this idea about a ranch kitchen that I thought would be a great twist on the typical western, without taking away all the accoutrements of a cowboy romance.
Q: That is very creative! What is the story behind the story?
A: My grandma and I used to make this recipe when I was a girl, and I remember being so frustrated with the way my bread turned out. I sat down with her and watched every single move she made in the kitchen one time, and was amazed at how much of her “recipe” wasn’t in the recipe. So I wrote it all down and voila! I could make bread just like her. I thought, what a great opportunity to get individual instruction from someone who’s so talented.
Q: Why do you write foodie erotic romance?
A: I love food. I love baking and cooking. I’ve been a professional chef, run my own kitchen, and cook at home regularly. Most of my life revolves around food in some way. It only made sense to me that my writing would, as well.
Q: What do you enjoy most about writing foodie erotic romance?
A: The research. In every single sense of that word.
Q: Please tell us about your favorite character in the book.
A: My favorite character is definitely Leo, the baker-hero of the book. He just came alive when I wrote him. I loved exploring the idea of having this tough-guy exterior of a ranch worker / cowboy, hiding the interior of a man who loves to get his hands dirty in the kitchen. I very much adored being able to write him instructing Mindy how to activate yeast. Every time I feel the temperature of water, from now on, I will think of Leo Fortiss. J
Q: He sounds hot! What inspires you?
A: New recipes inspire me. Tasting new food and writing about food is very inspiring. I think that the experience of something new always spurs me to think about how I could write or incorporate that food into a story. I’ve got a notebook chock full of new foods and recipes I want to write into my stories.
Q: What’s next for you?
A: I’m working on a series of foodie erotics. I really love this genre and I think I’ll stick with it. I’d love to someday become a big name in this genre, so I want to stick around and see if I can make a name for myself. But it’s definitely something I’m passionate about and something that I love, so I’d love to be able to keep doing this for a very long time.
Q: Would you like to ask readers a question?
A: I’d love to know from readers about their favorite foods. What food are you craving right this minute?
Thanks so much for being our guest today, Camryn!
One commenter will win a copy of Camryn's book when it is released on June 3!
Find Camryn online at...
Facebook: Camryn Rhys
Twitter: @camrynrhys
