Author Bio: Berengaria Brown is an award-winning,
best-selling, multi-published author of erotic romance with over one hundred
published digital, print, and audio books.
She writes contemporary, paranormal (magic, ghosts, vampires, fairies,
dragons, and werewolves), futuristic, medieval, and Regency-set historical. She
loves to read all different kinds of romance so that is what she writes: MMF,
MFM, FMMM, FFM, MM, FF, and MF. Whatever the characters need for their very hot
happily-ever-after, Berengaria makes sure they get it.
The Interview:
GRACIE: I’m
excited to have you here at The G-Spot, Berengaria! Please tell us a little
about yourself (or a lot J) and how and when you got into writing?
BERENGARIA: Hi
Gracie. Thank you for inviting me to visit with you today. I’ve always loved to
read. One day I had no new books to read and didn’t feel like rereading any of
my old favorites so I began to write a book myself. When it was finished, I
still didn’t have anything new to read so I wrote another one, and another one,
and…. the rest, as they say, is history.
GRACIE: Is there
any one thing or person in your life that inspired your writing? Any one thing
or person that influenced the genre you write in?
BERENGARIA: I write
all different genres because that’s what I read. Anything from sweet to very
kinky and everywhere in between. My dad had to watch me when I was very small
and my mom was ill, so he taught me to read. I credit him with giving me my
love for books.
GRACIE: When did
you get The Call and what was your first published book?
BERENGARIA: I wrote
three books one after the other and sent each one to a different publisher. All
three were accepted and all three were published quite quickly one after the
other. But the very first one was “Intensity” which released from Siren in April
2010.
GRACIE: What do
you know now about writing and the publishing industry that you wish you’d
known before you started?
BERENGARIA: I did a
lot of research before I sent off those first three books, so there were no big
surprises. But I guess I never stopped to think how difficult it would be to
find appropriate names for characters after I’d written quite a few books. All
the “best” names have already been used.
GRACIE: Please,
give us a little story behind the story and what inspired your Siren
Publishing, Menage Amour series, Possessive Passions.
BERENGARIA: I wanted
a world where ménages would be reasonable and logical. There have been cultures
in the past where all the brothers in a family shared the one woman, so I
started thinking what if. What if one of those cultures had moved to America
many years ago, but they’d had to hide from everyday life to continue their
cultural traditions. What if the men still choose their woman like that and
treat her as their treasured possession. What if they chose a woman not from
their culture and brought her to their hidden community.
GRACIE: In Possess
Me, what do you think is Shiloah’s Achilles’ heel and how do you go about
stomping it?
BERENGARIA: Shiloah’s
two fathers were murdered in the outside world for sharing Shiloah’s mama.
Shiloah falls in love with Goa and Stan, but they live outside on a farm.
Shiloah can’t leave her mama alone but she can’t expect her to leave the safety
of the hidden community either. So Shiloah has to work out what to do. Her mama
or her men. Or maybe….
GRACIE: Aside
from the fact that Connor and Patrick have just saved Phoebe’s life in Flash
Flood and she shares one of the most memorable and fulfilling nights of sex
with the two men, what makes Phoebe a perfect match for Connor and Patrick and
vice versa?
BERENGARIA: Phoebe
loves to work out mental puzzles and there are things about the men which don’t
quite sit right with Fi. Oh, they’re kind and helpful and very sexy, but
there’s something about them that she doesn’t understand and she’s not going to
rest until she’s figured it out. Connor and Patrick learn that they can trust
Fi and share their story with her.
GRACIE: Of all
the stories you’ve written, which is your favorite and why?
BERENGARIA: The
“Elinor’s Stronghold” series. These are medieval-set historical ménage romances
which were a lot of work to research, but the characters just gripped me and
wouldn’t let go. Besides, what’s not to like about half-naked warriors with big
swords?
GRACIE: I know
this is like asking a mother which is her favorite child, but which of your characters
is your favorite and why?
BERENGARIA: Okay,
this will be right out of left field, but two very minor characters. Deborah is
nine and the youngest child in the Arnott family whose stories are in the
“Virgins No More” series. She’s very clever and always thinking of new ideas,
some of which have entertaining consequences for the adult members of her
family.
Ava is only six. Her
father was killed when their village was attacked in the Elinor’s Stronghold
series. She has courage far beyond her years, and her tiny, frail body, and
plays a part in “Restoring Garnet’s Heart”.
GRACIE: In
general, what about your characters makes them unique?
BERENGARIA: They are
all different. Each one has his or her own quirks, beliefs, problems,
weaknesses, and strengths. However all my heroines are strong on the inside,
even if it takes a perceptive man to realize this.
GRACIE: What is
your favorite aspect of the writing process? Your least favorite?
BERENGARIA: Favorite:
When the book is almost finished and I finally understand how everything is
going to come together. Least favorite: Sitting down, concentrating, and
getting from the excitement of the beginning to the resolution of the end.
GRACIE: Are you a
pantser or do you outline?
BERENGARIA: A
mixture. I don’t start writing until I have the characters clear in my mind
with a beginning, an end, and a few points I want to make along the way. How I
get there is pure pantsing. Things happen that I never expect and often new
secondary characters just turn up and start talking to me.
GRACIE: If you
weren’t a writer, what other profession would you have chosen to pursue?
BERENGARIA: I want to
be the mistress of a 90-year-old billionaire.
GRACIE: Who are
some of your favorite authors and why? Name some of your favorite books and why
they’re your favorites.
BERENGARIA: Georgette
Heyer introduced me to historical romance and she’s a long-time favorite
author. I love Anny Cook’s Mystic Valley books. Edith Pargeter’s Brother
Cadfael books are also firm favorites of mine. But basically I just love to
read.
GRACIE: What are you
working on now and what should readers be looking forward to from you in the
future?
BERENGARIA: I’ve just
sold a new MM series, “The Paint Store Boys”. It’s a series of four books about
men who buy a paint store.
GRACIE: Do you
have a website and/or how can readers contact you?
BERENGARIA: My blog: http://berengariasblog.blogspot.com/
My website:
http://berengariabrown.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BerengariaBrown
GRACIE: Where and
how can readers purchase and/or read samples of your work?
BERENGARIA:
Bookstrand: http://www.bookstrand.com/berengaria-brown
All Romance ebooks: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/storeSearch.html?searchBy=author&qString=Berengaria+Brown
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Berengaria-Brown/e/B00541R3YQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1403658211&sr=1-1
GRACIE: What
advice do you have for beginning writers?
BERENGARIA: Keep
reading, keep writing, keep perfecting your craft. Never give up.
GRACIE: Anything
else about yourself or your writing you’d like to share with your readers?
BERENGARIA: I love to
hear from readers. Please drop by and say hi.
GRACIE: Berengaria,
thanks so much for taking time from your busy schedule to share yourself and
your work with us at The G-Spot and giving us a little insight into your
writing and the writing process! We’ll let you get back to writing those
wonderful books you write! All the best!
