She is a multi-published author of sensual romance and erotic romance fiction. I just wish she had some red hair or her skin had a burn time under 1 minute. I'd love her to be part of our Lush and Blush Club. She gave great answers and is really fun!! E komo mai Lelani. :-) Mahalo nui loa for being here with us this week!! :-)
Tell our readers a wee bit
about yourself. What are 5 things you wished you’d done, have done or are still
to do, on the Bucket List? J
1. Travel and have more adventures with my husband who's visited many different parts of the world.
2. Ski a Black Diamond with my husband someday, if I'm ever skilled enough. I'm hard core Green Run and bunny hill talent, woot-woot!
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| Just had to put this one up, because it has the lovely Lelani and I just LOVE this cover. So home! |
Tell us about the genre you
write, why do you love it and how did you get into it?
My genre of choice is sensual
romance, to include the sub-genre of Erotica / Erotic Romance fiction. Writing
about the dynamics and chemistry of two individuals who meet and fall in love,
then taking their physical and emotional attraction to explicitly hot levels is
an adventure in itself.
I think my enjoyment and interest in travel, past and
present, and people, fuels my creativity. I also grew up in one of the most
beautiful and romantic places on the planet—Hawaii Hawaii
How I got into writing… When
you grow up not having a lot in terms of material things, and in a strict and
religious family environment, reading about what other people are doing is a great
escape tool. While I grew up enjoying many different genre of literature,
romance appealed to me the most.
What’s your most favorite restaurant
in the world? Where, why and the best dish/es they make?
Way too many to list, but
will try! I’ve eaten in restaurants by the sea, by a cliff, in a serene island
valley, at the top of a ski mountain. My current favorite restaurant is
Mediterranean Bistro, and they have a thick grilled steak heaped with yummy things
like artichokes, and/or a chicken with apricots dish, and glazed young carrots
with their green tops still attached--my mouth waters just thinking about it.
Oh, and they make this wonderful peartini cocktail, with the rim of the glass
crusted with delicious green sugar crystals.
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| Peartini Cocktail ~ Yum!!! |
Remember those ads for
Expedia that asked, ‘If you could go anywhere in the world, but have to go
right now?’ Where would you have gone and would you have said to YES to right
now?
What parts of you, are
incorporated into your characters?
*Smiling* How they can mess
stuff up without planning to, maybe? I think… I would say traits that I admire
in these women would be their resourcefulness, sensuality, sassiness and sense
of humor. They’ve had their own life experiences that shaped them and their
story, so I’m not sure I can claim too much.
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| Lelani knows how to paddle herself out of hot water! |
Favorite male hero/public
figure you admire in the world, dead or alive, and why?
It’s hard for me to
name just one person as there have been many male figures I’ve admired over the
years who’ve contributed to society in terms of their creative art, music,
literature, leadership and/or being a humanitarian.
Favorite female heroine/public
figure you admire in the world, dead or alive, and why?
This one is easier to
answer. I have to give a shout out to my mother because she is one of the
bravest, wisest, most upbeat women I know. She lived through wartime occupation
in the Philippines Hawaii
Have you ever had a character
just “do their own thing?” Have you ever had an argument with one of your
characters? Or anything else odd happen?
Oh, yes. These characters say
things that weren’t in the script. Unexpected scenes are often created from
dialogue, tension and events that unfold in the story. It’s a great feeling for
a writer to see their storyline playing itself out.
What’s your passion in life?
Writing specifically, as it
is something I own, something I enjoy whether I get paid for it or not, whether
relatives or family support my passion or not. Luckily my family supports
whatever makes me happy.
What’s your writer’s routine?
Do you write whenever or at certain times? Are you a pantser or plotter? Where
do you like to write?
When I’m in full throttle, let’s
say I’m writing a story meant to submit to my publisher, I can write from dawn
up into the dead of night. The house can be on fire and I’ll keep working. Between
projects, I’m not so ambitious. I like to do a synopsis of the story to capture
a certain theme, or tone, and to establish that I do have a story that includes
goals, motivations, conflicts and character growth by the end of the book.
I write in a family room/den
with bookcases filled end to end with books. There’s a stone fireplace and
French doors that lead out to a patio shaded by a pergola, and a maple tree, and
surrounded by lilac hedges.
If you could pick a past
life, what time period would appeal to you and why?
Ancient Rome
Rich or poor?
Uh… I’ve been
poor, so I’d be happy to give Rich in Ancient Rome a go.
Lelani Black's Bio:
Lelani Black is a
multi-published author of sensual romance and erotic romance fiction. Many of
her stories take place in the beautiful islands of Hawaii
February 2010 marked Lelani’s
debut as a published author with her #1 Bestselling erotica audiobook ~ Boss
With Benefits ~ A funny, hot and spicy Hawaii boss/secretary love story!
*explicit themes, scenes and language, 18+ please (also on Kindle)
Dowdy office wallflower Keely St. John has no intention of fanning her gorgeous boss's flame. It's bad enough she's spent the last three months fantasizing about him. To make things even more complicated, her “sister” spent one lusty night with the island tycoon! When Jack finds out Keely's secret, she could lose more than just her job and a Boss With Benefits.
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| At home on the island, local fruit and vegetables are fresh and available all year round. |
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| There are always chooks trotting around the place on any island in Hawai'i! :-) |
ALOHA! and MAHALO NUI LOA
to everyone
Thank you Meg and Lelani for a wonderfully in-depth interview. I always leave your interviews, Meg, with the feeling that I know the person, which is exactly what I want from an interview. And I have to say that I, too, would like to live in a comfortable tree-house in the Hawaiian jungle :-) How fab would that be? All the best to you, Lelani, with your writing projects. And of course, all the best to you, Meg. Aloha!
ReplyDeleteMatthew, thank you so stopping by Meg's place while I visit, hehe :) Yes, we'll have a tree-house warming party, cocktails and pupus (appetizers) and you two will be the first ones on the invite list. Have a great day, Matthew, and thank you again xx
ReplyDeleteAloha Matt and Lelani,
DeleteThanks for stopping by as always Matt :-) and I'm definitely going to take Lelani up on cocktails and pupus in her treehouse. :-) I'm really glad you get a sense of the person from these interviews Matt. That is great to know. :-) And thanks for being here Lelani. It's so nice to have someone from home. :-)
Mahalo and aloha Meg :-)
Great to get to know you, Lelani. What a beautiful name! I loved your photos, and your books sound fab. I've always thought Hawaii would be such a romantic place to visit. I live in England, and our castles and stately homes are also romantic, but without the sunshine! :) Best of luck with your novels - and all the best to you, too, Meg! Thanks for the great interview!
ReplyDeleteAloha, Helena - We are hoping to visit the UK next year, too. And yes, Hawaii is just beautiful! There's a snow capped mountain in the island tropics, on the same island as a spewing volcano, hehe. Like England, Hawaii was also a monarchy and sovereignty, ruled by kings and queens. It is romantic, and there's something for every visitor. Thank you again for your well wishes and for stopping by :)
DeleteAloha Helena and Lelani,
DeleteOhh, you two should do swap holidays. :-) Helena can rustle you up a romantic castle Lelani and you can tell he all the gorgeous spots to go at home. :-) My island, the Big Island has the active volcano and snow capped mountain in the winter. We have the two highest mountains from their base in the world. But Lelani's island also has gorgeous things. There's a beach there that is like being in a swimming pool. It's utterly fabulous. And you can go to the top of Mt Haleakala. On a clear day you can see between our two islands. It's only about a twenty minute flight across. :-) Hawai'i does have something for every visitor, Lelani is so right. Ohh... now I want to go home. LOL.
Thanks so much for stopping by Helena! :-) It's lovely to have Lelani here. Aloha nui loa Meg :-)
Hello Lelani (such a beautiful name) - Hi Meg - big hugs:)
ReplyDeleteYes, Meg talks about the islands and it makes me want to be there. I got to visit for two weeks...enough to think of it as paradise and throw myself back there in meditation:)
Excellent interview ladies - thanks for sharing "you" Lelani:) Congratulations on your book - it sounds fascinating - love erotic romance.
Aloha Kay Dee, thank you so much for stopping by (I can't take credit for my pen name tho, hehe). Yes, Meg is such a delight and I feel honored to have been invited to contribute to her blog. I'm glad you enjoyed your island stay, every now and then I run into people who say it rained the whole time they were there in Hawaii, or that they were stationed there and missed the four seasons, or that it's nice to visit, but not to live. When I was younger, I couldn't wait to leave the islands and see the world, and now that I've seen (a little bit of) the world, I'm always excited to go back to the islands. Thanks again and best of luck in your writing ventures, Kay Dee!
ReplyDeleteAloha Kay Dee and Lelani,
DeleteGreat comments thanks :-) It's been so lovely to have Lelani here on my blog. A slice of sunshine from home. :-) I never have a problem with the rain at home, because the weather gods are so easy to communicate with. I couldn't possibly miss winter if I tried. I never got rock fever when I lived there twice. LOL. Some of us are islanders through and through I suppose. LOL I understand wanting to leave though and see the world Lelani. I grew up in New Zealand and I couldn't wait to leave and see the world. I'm still glad to be away but I love to go back and visit. But my spiritual home is always Hawai'i. I get off the plane in Kona, walk down the steps into the lovely warm damp air and every muscle in my body unwinds. Gorgeous. :-)
Thanks Kay Dee for coming over to read and say aloha to Lelani. And again, lovely to have you here Lelani. I just love meeting another romance erotica writer from home. And I can't wait to read more of your books. They grab me!
Aloha and mahalo Meg :-)