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Born in the Chinese year of the monkey, Shelby Reed was destined for cleverness,
skillfulness, flexibility, and remarkable inventiveness.
In that same year, “Green Tambourine,” “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay,” and “Mrs. Robinson” were number one hits on the Billboard 100. Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood went on a space odyssey. Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey played Romeo and Juliet in a Royal Film Performance, and Duane Jones and Judith O’Dea endured a night with the living dead. And America was at war.
A few decades later, music still plays, movies still show, and once again our
American soldiers fight in a foreign war. But Shelby Reed is a firm believer in the idea that love conquers all, and this belief shines through wonderfully in her sensual, erotic romances; whether she’s writing a hot contemporary like A Fine Work of Art or a spooky paranormal like The Midnight Rose.
Ms. Reed’s extravagant imagination goes back to childhood when she dressed up with her older sister and younger brother and played Little House on the Prairie for hours. She also made up stage plays involving paranormal elements, darkness, and death and performed them for the neighborhood kids.
On Writing, in Ms. Reed’s words
Who or what inspires you to write?
In the past, I’ve seen movies or TV shows that gave me ideas, or I’ve read articles on issues affecting women that spurred my muse. The short novel I wrote called A Fine Work of Art, about an older woman who falls for a younger man, was based on a Dear Abby-type column I read in a magazine.
Why did you begin writing?
I couldn’t find the books I wanted to read on the shelves! Sometimes I still can’t. I like a particular intensity in my romance novels, so particular that I have to make it up. I also like hero-driven romances, which are hard to find. They are also hard to sell, apparently, which is unfortunate for readers/writers like me who LOVE being in the hero’s head even more than the heroine’s.
What author inspires you?
Probably most of all Nora Roberts because she has found a way to make writing serve her, instead of the other way around. If I could figure out how to balance the practical side of writing with the magical, I would consider myself a success. But so far that path has eluded me.
What do you find most rewarding about writing?
Reader feedback. When I get a note from a reader telling me they love my characters as much as I do, I know I have arrived. And second to that, writing a scene, sitting back, rereading it, and realizing that it packs a punch. There’s a level of satisfaction to that experience that can’t be beat.
Have you experienced writer’s block? And if so, how did you cure it?
I slid into a block of sorts about three years ago, and despite every attempt to pull out of it, I haven’t been able to fully recover yet. I have a fear that I only had five or six books in me, and that I’m all tapped out, which is obviously ridiculous. In my saner moments, what I truly think is going on is a lack of inspiration, and an overabundance of everyday life interference. In the New Year, I plan to double my efforts to beat this block and to refocus on my writing as something I love to do instead of something I HAVE to do. I’m just not ready to give up hope yet. Writing is an amazing career, and somehow I have to make it work for me.
I hope Ms. Reed beats writer’s block because she brings a remarkable inventiveness to her tales of love. The most memorable being Seraphim where seraphic operatives, fighting in archangel Michael’s army, hunt for the Spear of Longinus in order to keep it out of hands that will only do great evil with it.
Coming soon from an e-book store near you.
In Ms. Reed’s upcoming erotic contemporary release, Pictures of You, she brings a few giggles and lots of passion to the story. Keir Hanson suffers from a broken heart and the last thing she wants is to have her deepest desires awakened by the nude male model, Thad Warner, at her art class. But Thad sends her thoughts into flights of imagination, giving Keir plenty of sultry fantasies to heat up her days and keep her awake at night.
Soon their not-so-innocent flirtations turn into something deeper, and Keir is faced with letting down her guard and risking another broken heart for a night of mind-numbing bliss in Thad’s arms.
Normally I’m not a big fan of erotica. If I can’t feel the love between the characters, it’s just plain porn to me. But Shelby Reed connects her characters in such a way that you know love will develop if it hasn’t already. Her characters are always drawn to each other by more than just physical attraction.
Though her novels are sometimes filled with graphic sex, it never comes off as gratuitous—a rare gift, making Shelby Reed an author to treasure in the erotic genre. Pictures of You is short, sweet, sizzling hot, and very satisfying on all levels.
Want a taste of Shelby Reed’s work? Grab a bite at her Website:
http://www.shelbyreed.com, and then head over to her publisher Ellora’s Cave at
http://www.ellorascave.com because you’re going to want more than just a nibble before you’re through.
