Novels Alive and Be My Bard.com are very pleased to welcome this week’s guest to the “10 Questions With…” interview chair…KASSY TAYLER!
We’ve all pondered the age old question of which came first the CHICKEN or the EGG? As a writer, when creating a new story, which tends to come first for you—the CHARACTERS or the PLOT?
Definitely the characters. They appear to me and then they tell me their story, I just happen to be the lucky one who gets to write it down.
It’s inevitable that small bits and pieces of a writer’s own personality will make their way into the characters they create. But if you had to write yourself into one of your books, would your character most likely be the hero/heroine, the steadfast best friend, the comedy relief or the villainous mastermind?
Oh I would definitely be the heroine. I would love to kick some ass.
Speaking of villains…do you prefer writing characters that are clearly evil from the second they appear on the page or the surprise villain that no one would ever expect?
It really depends on the story. Some are evil at first, other’s just have their own agenda.
If you had the power to step inside the pages of any book for 24 hours, which one would you choose and why?
Wow, hard question. I think I would choose one of my own stories.
If you could use that same power to jump through the screen into the world of your favorite television show or movie, which would it be and why?
The Avengers, but only if I could be Hawkeye’s girlfriend with some super powers of my own.
Over the last few years, books of an erotic nature or with taboo subject matter have become more acceptable—even popular—in the mainstream marketplace. How, if at all, has this change affected the way that you write your own “love scenes”?
It hasn’t. I am not a fan of erotica and my love scenes are pretty tame.
There was once a time when authors had to rely almost solely on mainstream media like newspapers and magazines to find reviews written on their latest book. Now that the internet has made it possible for anyone with a keyboard to become an armchair critic, has the sheer number of reviews available for your books made it easier or harder to deal with criticism?
It’s just a part of the process. You can’t please everyone. I think I get more annoyed when people don’t get their facts right or say, I hate this genre so therefore I hate this book. If you don’t like the genre, then don’t read the book. I had someone really blast one of my books on Amazon because it was shelved in inspirational in a book store. That was not my fault, so why are you blasting me? That is what makes it all so frustrating.
Many authors have branched out into multiple genres over the years. Is there a particular genre of fiction that you have always wanted to tackle but, haven’t tried yet?
I’ve written in several different genres, historical westerns, colonials, medieval, steampunk, dystopian, sci/fi, contemporary YA and urban fantasy. I’ve got a contemporary romance and a romantic suspense I’d love to write when I have the time.
If you could choose one historical/contemporary romance from your own or another author’s library of work to be made into a feature film which would it be and why?
I would choose my Ashes of Twilight series. I think it would make an amazing movie with the moodiness of the dome and the dark tunnels beneath.
Tell us a little bit about the project you are working on now or share something about your newest or upcoming release(s).
At the moment I am writing as Colby Hodge on the fourth book in my Oasis series, Zander. It will be the conclusion to the story started with Star Shadows, people have been asking for it for years and I’m finally able to sit down and write it. I hope to have it out sometime this fall.
ASHES OF TWILIGHT
Kassy Tayler has always been a writer. Since the beginning of her memories, her biggest desire has been to put words to paper. Now she is living her dream and has several published novels to her credit in multiple genres. She’s been married for several years to the man of her dreams and they have raised two exceptional sons. Tayler lives within the shadow of Pilot Mountain in North Carolina where she helps with animal rescue through her local humane society. She is the mother to Cody, a doxie, and Cisco and Dax two very interesting cats.
Kassy also writes historical westerns under the name Cindy Holby and sci/fi under the name Colby Hodge. You can find info on her other books at www.cindyholby.com
