Facebook FAQ

A:
There is no page limit but most authors develop a natural length when it comes to telling a story. That length is usually a product of their style. My books are dialogue driven rather than narrative or description driven. A book that is heavy on dialogue, by its very nature, tends to be a tad shorter. I write with an emphasis on dialogue because that is the way the story comes to me — through the voices of the characters.

A:
I never base characters on anyone I know. The people in my stories come out of my head, not off the street. But having said that, I do try to give my characters interesting problems and quirks that feel at least somewhat realistic.

A:
Great essay on the changes in romance (see Discussions tab on Facebook Page). Thanks for taking the time to write it. There isn’t room to respond to all of your comments here but I’ll take a shot at a couple of your questions. First, I would like to point out that it is impossible to nail down style and story trends in this field. This is a genre that is constantly experimenting and reinventing itself. That is one of the reasons I love writing it.

A:
It’s true that the romance genre traditionally has not been highly respected. But it turns out that the authors in other classic genres such as mystery, suspense, thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, etc., sense the same lack of respect. Just ask ’em! The bottom line is that genre fiction, in general, is not highly regarded by the literary and academic establishment. That is because our kind of fiction gets its power from the ancient, heroic archetypes and storytelling traditions — not modern angst. In genre fiction, the characters are troubled and flawed, just as they are in modern literary fiction. But in genre fiction, the heroes and heroines don’t take the victimhood approach to life. They are expected to overcome their problems with the ancient, heroic virtues: courage, determination and a belief in the healing power of love. In the end, they must do the right thing. They are not allowed to whine!

A:
I chose the Victorian era for the Arcane stories that take place in the past because the fog-and-gaslight atmosphere seemed a perfect landscape for a secret society dedicated to the study of the paranormal.

A:
Describing the women’s clothes! They wore so many of them. A well dressed lady might leave the house wearing nearly forty pounds of corsets, petticoats and heavy skirts. That is why my heroines are all members of The Rational Dress Movement (which actually existed). The RD Movement’s goal was to get rid of corsets and lighten the weight of female attire. Their motto: No lady should wear more than seven pounds of undergarments. Don’t laugh. It was considered very progressive, very feminist thinking at the time.

A:
Fallon is a real name, believe it or not. I found it in a “name the baby book”. That is where I get most of the names for my characters. Let me tell you, there are some very odd names in some of those books! The thing about names for characters is that they have to feel “right”. There’s just a click when you find the perfect name.

A:
I love working with the psychic element because it adds a wonderful layer of intimacy and connection between the hero and heroine. I also like it because it allows me to do some interesting things with the plot. I think of psychic talents as being just “one step beyond” intuition. I don’t claim to have any paranormal talents but I do have a sense of intuition. I think most people believe that they have some degree of intuition. That’s what makes it possible for readers to step into my Arcane world.

A:
Don’t worry, you’ll be hearing from a daughter of Vanza soon! I loved doing that story (LIE BY MOONLIGHT under my Amanda Quick name) and I’m so glad you were intrigued enough to ask about those young ladies.

A:
Vanza was one of my early attempts to sneak a mysterious, secret society into some of my books. In fact, it was one of the inspirations for my Arcane Society series. Vanza, as I conceived it, is a mysterious martial arts philosophy. The heroes in three of my Amanda Quick books are members of this clandestine group (I THEE WED, WICKED WIDOW, and LIE BY MOONLIGHT). In the last story, LIE BY MOONLIGHT, I ended the book with the hero and heroine teaching the arts of Vanza to a school full of orphaned girls. And in answer to your question, we might, indeed, meet one of the young women in a future book or at least one of her descendants….

A:
Ha! That was easy. I went into a bookstore and checked out the romance bookshelves. At the time there were very few writers under “Q”. Figured I’d have the entire shelf to myself, heh, heh. Sadly, that did not last long. I chose Quick because after a few years of watching publishers try to squeeze Jayne Ann Krentz onto a cover, I wanted something short.

A:
I’m still doing futuristics like SWEET STARFIRE but these days I write them under the name Jayne Castle. My Harmony/Ghost Hunter series are novels of romantic-suspense set in the future on another world. You can find out more about the series by clicking on the Harmony link to the left.

A:
Probably not. I left that series as a trilogy because, frankly, it didn’t sell well. People stood in line around the block not to buy those books. I have since left that publisher. I can tell you, though, that it was doing Lavinia with her gift for mesmerism, that helped inspire my Arcane Society series.

A:
I love including animals in my books and in the case of the futuristics it is just too much fun to pass up. They add a whole different dimension to the story. The dust bunnies are particularly useful in my Jayne Castle books because they act as a bridge between humans and the mysteries of Harmony. They were actually inspired, in part, by a parakeet named Ferd who lived with us for ten years. There was something whimsical and clever and a little dangerous about Ferd. I think it was those dinosaur genes. He forever changed the way I view birds and animals in general.

Q: Do you have plans for a signing in Savannah, GA?

Q: Do you have any Seattle area book signings planned for this summer?

A:
Unfortunately, I don’t have a complete list but I can tell you that all of my current titles, including all of the Arcane Society novels are available on MP3. Also Brilliance Audio has picked up both my Amanda Quick and JAK backlist. They are releasing the books very rapidly in that format.

A:
Tesla is a fascinating character. I have not done much research on him and I can’t quite see him as a hero in one of my books (maybe it’s the haircut). There’s a bit too much of the “mad scientist” vibe there. On the other hand, some of his theories certainly fit in neatly with Arcane Society research!