Welcome to Cherie De Sues' guest blog

Welcome Ms. Cherie De Sues to Love Romances and More, thank you for joining us.


Did you always want to become a writer?

Always. I started writing for my school newspaper, town newspaper, sending in short stories to magazines in High School. Even with a career in the operating room, I still found the time to write and submit short stories.



What is the most, and the least interesting fact about writing?

I love the process of unfolding my characters, revealing parts of a suspense plot and finding the heart of my story. My least favourite thing to do is editing...over, and over, and over again. It's the monotony, you know? I rather be creative, but the editing is a serious part of being a writer.



How did you celebrate your first release? What was it like to see your book in a bookstore? Do you have a special ritual for celebrating a book release?

My son made me a great dinner with one of my favourite wines, then friends brought me out to play. When I saw my book in print for the first time, I had a sense of great pride. My eyes went to my name and I thought, "That's right, that's me, uh huh, I'm bad..." A little attitude took place, but the next day I was right back at the laptop editing my next book. LOL. You can't take yourself too seriously. I don't have rituals, I just feel what I feel. Friends I haven't spoken with in years contacted me for congratulations and to reunite...catch up. I really like that.



How did your family react to fact that you write romance novels? Have your family read your book?

I don't have much family I see, but my father is proud...although he'd never read the racy novels I write. My son used to edit for me until I found a great critique partner. Now he just reads the dedication to see if he got first billing over my Irish terrier, Reilly.



Most authors are also avid readers. Is this the case with you? If so, who are some of your favorites? Have any influenced your writing?

I have been an avid read since I stole my "mother's" novels from under her bed at 12 and 13 years old. Now, I really like the JD Robb series of futuristic cop, Eve. Nora Roberts is a master of blending three dimensional characters and great plots. I enjoy Dean Koontz novels that are in "real time". Fast reads of horror suspense, love them. I've been influenced greatly by the wonderful timing each author has and their characters are like people I know.



Do you feel each of your characters live with you as you write? Do their lives sometimes take over a part of your life? Can you name an example? Do you have living role models for your characters?

I'm a scientist, trained to think analytically and my characters kick my butt. They have a mind of their own like I'm channelling them from another dimension. Weird. I reign them in and they take me in directions I never would have though of, I really enjoy that part of writing. For instance, in Tales of the Red Moon Clan, I had no intention of spending half of the novel with Neol and Sara being so intensely drawn to one another so quickly. When Neol saved Sara, a chain of events occurred that placed them together in such a fashion that even I could barely tear them apart. I work hard at developing characters that have parts of people I've met or know, somehow the characters seem very real to me. I dream of my characters when I sleep, they live out their lives and give me clues when I'm stuck. In the morning, I have a new direction, I love the way the mind works.



Where do you get the inspirations for your books?

I play, what if...What if Sandy is riding a bike, then plows into an expensive Mercedes driven by her new neighbour moving in next door. What if he's a killer and she begins to put clues together that lead her to... See what I mean?


Do you find it difficult at times to write love scenes?

Not on a sexual level, I feel no embarrassment from the act. What I find difficult is keeping the characters connected with internal thoughts, dialog and physical cues. Human beings are more than mechanical lovers and I believe there needs to be all of the worry, shyness and hormonal desire I can throw in. We are complex beings and I feel I must deliver that in my novels.


Do you have a problem with deadlines and have you ever suffered a writers block?

I always meet a deadline and I don't suffer from writer's block. I suffer from my Irish terrier dragging me off for the dog park, walks and playtime. If I were completely alone, I could write, promote, do emails, create banners...LOL...I would never move from my comfy airchair near the window. I'm lucky to have friends, my son and pup to drag me away!


Do you prefer stand-alone books or series (As a reader or a writer) ?

I write both. Tales of the Red Moon Clan will be book 1 of a trilogy of stand-alone novels. The characters are rich and the Navajo family bloodline cries out for two more novels. I like mixing things up, Nora Roberts does this and I think that may be why she's written for so many years...diversity and flexibility in genre.



If you could change places with one character from your book, who would it be and why?

I would want to be Sara in Tales of the Red Moon Clan. She's feisty, smart and discovers a love most women only dream about. Her adventures with Neol in the Oregon forest were fantastic, I want to camp out with Neol!


What is your favorite book from the books that you have written so far? Who are your favorite hero and heroine, and why?

I really enjoyed writing Tales of the Red Moon Clan and the characters became like my best friends. Neol would anger the spirits themselves to protect Sara, his one true mate. As a Navajo shape-shifter he has needed to keep his secret, with Sara he allows himself the freedom to love.


Would you like to give another genre a try?

I think writing another genre would be great if the romantic element were still included. I could write a science fiction world and really enjoy that, but I would need to have a romance going on.


Which book was the hardest to write and which the easiest?

Honestly, I'm still working on my "hardest" book to write. It's a Rubenesque romance and I really like the characters, but I ran into some plot holes. The novel takes place in Europe, so a lot of research went into the book. I hope to have it complete in the next month. The easiest book to write was "The Seduction of Simone", a very erotic, ménage and ghost story. Fun, sexy and creepy.


If you could choose one of your books for a movie, which one would it be and who would you choose as the cast?

Definitely, Tales of the Red Moon Clan. The Oregon forest, river and coastal communities are breathtaking scenery. The plot is easily adapted to a screenplay and the characters are deep enough with their dialog. Neol would be difficult to cast, he is Navajo, tall and muscular. Sara could be played by any number of young, attractive starlets in Hollywood.


If you could travel through time to visit a special time period or famous person, what or who would it be and why?

I've actually thought about this before and the list is long. I'd want to smack FORD in the head and tell him that fossil fuel is a bad way to go. At $3.00 a gallon and the air quality damage, I would gladly drive a steam powered vehicle. LOL.


Do you listen to music while you are writing and if so what music is it?

I do listen to music to get me in the right mood. I like Dido, Enya and other soft girly music for romance. I listen to hard rock, like AC/DC for chase scenes and Gypsy Kings, Ottmar Leibert during dialog.


Big congrats to your latest release, can you please tell us something about the book?

Thank you, I appreciate the nod. Tales of the Red Moon Clan is a paranormal suspense romance. Here's a blurb from the cover.

Neol Pallaton walks alone through the bowels of society as a bounty hunter, until he shifts into a cougar to save Assistant D.A. Sara Hughes from certain death. A relentless killer keeps them moving by day through the Oregon forest—and by night under the full moon, passion rules their hearts.


The rugged forest is no place for a beautiful and feisty city woman, but Neol’s determined to help Sara piece together why she's being hunted. Sara thought bounty hunters were brutal loners who stretched the law she’s sworn to uphold. But Neol proves that no one can hunt, track and protect her like a Navajo medicine man from the Red Moon Clan.


Neol is willing to anger the spirits to protect his one true mate. Sara will have to bend the law to keep Neol and her alive—and together forever.


Are you working on anything right now, and can you tell us a teaser about these projects?

I always have 4-5 projects going at the same time. I write both suspense and paranormal genres. I just turned in an interagency suspense novella about a new DEA Agent, Danielle LaRue (Dani) and a jaded ATF Agent, Rick Tarrango. Sparks fly on this one as Dani and Rick gather evidence from a Mexican drug cartel and an arms dealer sitting on a yacht full of weapons from Guatemala. Rick is a real cowboy who makes up the rules as he goes and Dani is an ex-Navy SEAL who believes in discipline. When Dani gets an order from her section chief to blow the yacht, Rick stands in her way. The fur flies in this novel, oh yeah and you are the first to know about the ebook.