Author Spotlight: Lorelie Brown
March 6, 2018
Ahhh!!! I know, I know it’s been a little over a month since my last blog post. I’ve been a busy bee! I’ll explain next week where I’ve been and what caused my hiatus. Long story short, I’ve been writing. Shocker! I promise you’ll get all the gory details next week. For now, let’s focus on the present. This week, my feature is all about Ms. Lorelie. I met Lorelie last year at my very first RWA conference. The hotel lobby is by far the best place to dish and network. Well, second to the bar. We got to chatting, I asked her if she wanted to be interviewed for my blog, and here we are. She’s a very cool lady, and now you all get to learn a little bit about her.
Take it away Lorelie…
I always find author interviews kind of boring. We only get to see one side of an author, the polite side. If you had an evil doppelganger, what detail would they enjoy revealing about you to the public that people would find surprising and possibly questionable?
Um, probably that I’m radically insecure? I mean, I feel like if you follow me on twitter, you might get an idea, because I joke about it, but there’s a very large portion of my jokes…that aren’t jokes. So if you ever see me in person, tell me that I’m pretty and super smart. I’d really appreciate it.
Finish this sentence: I believe all artists should have ______.
Their eyes open. We can’t create if we don’t first observe the world as it really is. I hope that would then lead to compassion for the people we observe and the situations we see, but that’s the optimist in me coming through. (Remember the part about being radically insecure? I’m now wondering if I have the hubris to claim the title of artist. See?)
This question applies to all genres. Name a book you wish you’d written.
I honestly don’t have an answer to this. I’ve read books and adored them, but I’ve never then wished that I’d written them. Mostly because I don’t think they’d be the same books if *I* had written them. I’d filter them through my own worldview and put my own spin on them, and then they’d be different books. And the whole exercise would be defeated. I just wish to write the best books that I’m capable of.
Do you adhere to a writing schedule? If so, how strict are you with sticking to it?
Hahahaha, noooooo. No schedule for me. I’m the type of author who squeaks in a page or two wherever I can, at least for the start of the book. Once I get in deep enough that the pages are really singing, I start logging more hours at a time, but they’re still not on a schedule.
We’re not that far into 2018. What’s one personal change you want to make this year?
I’m trying to find balance in the way I treat food. I was in a pretty major car accident at the end of September, and I kind of used it as license to lay in bed and eat Red Vines. I regret nothing, because I was pretty beat up and Junior Mints made me feel better, but I’ve got to find a bit more middle ground. Food is tasty and enjoyable, but it supports life; it isn’t actually all of life.
Say you’re provided with an opportunity to have a personal chef for the evening. What meal is the chef preparing for your dining pleasure?
A lobster. I’ve enjoyed “lobster flavored” things, but I’ve never really enjoyed eating an actual, steamed lobster before. I’d like it personally prepared for me so I know if I really don’t like them, or if they’ve just been prepared in inferior ways.
What would you like to see more of in the romance industry?
More of everything. More of life, as it actually is. People of color, and the *full* LGBTQ+ spectrum (not just hot white dudes banging.) More heroes with regular professions, not just billionaires. More heroines who have jobs that aren’t nurturing in some way.
In your opinion, what’s the best cartoon ever made?
Beauty and the Beast? Or if we’re talking TV shows, maybe Muppet Babies. It’s not objectively the most delicately crafted cartoon, but I was kinda traumatized by having my collection of Muppet Babies happy meals toys stolen when I was a kid, so it looms large in my memory.
Here’s the memory as I remember it: I was on a trip with my dad and playing with my handful of toys on a curb outside a gas station. He called me inside to go to the bathroom and when I came back they were gone. Absolutely tragic to a 7 or 8-year-old.
Okay, but why the hell was I playing alone outside a gas station??? I hope I’m remembering it wrong, but it was the ‘80s, and parents were still kind of stupid in ways.
In 2017, you were nominated for a RITA Award. Has that experience changed how you’ll guide your writing career moving forward?
Honestly? It froze me for a while! I went through this period of trying to write and being unable to get really deep into a story. I’d get a couple of pages in and then decide the story was trash and won’t ever measure up. I think I’ve gotten over it now. (Cross your fingers for me.) I’m trying to focus solely on the stories I want to tell and not think of the big picture.
If you could have a dance battle with any celebrity, who would you choose?
I have very little confidence in my dance battle abilities, unless we’re going to put me in my 19-year-old body, put me in a rave and give me white gloves. Nowadays, I don’t move well, so I think I’d just like to use this opportunity to ogle someone who *does* dance well. As a result, I hereby challenge Channing Tatum to a dance-off whenever he’s ready. Come find me, Channing! I’m ready. Please wear a thin white tank top.
**Bonus Question**
Ever tried BDSM? If not, would you?
I have. I’m toppy, but that’s about all I’m going to say to that! LOL.
Bio:
After a semi-nomadic childhood throughout California, Lorelie Brown spent high school in Orange County before joining the US Army. She’s traveled the world from South Korea to Italy and now lives north of Chicago. She set her Belladonna Ink series in Southern California because she gets enough sleet and snow in her real life.
Lorelie has three active sons, a shih tzu and a yorkiepoo puppy. The yorkiepoo makes a guest appearance in one of her books. Readers can find out which by asking her on Twitter: @LorelieBrown.
Social Media:
Books:
Get your one-click finger ready! Check out Lorelie’s latest release Her Hometown Girl, Book 3 in the Belladonna Ink series.
