Thank you for having me as your guest
today. I’m very excited about the release of Her Royal Masquerade.
Did you set any goals for 2013?
Actually, I left
my full-time day job in January 2013 in order to write full-time. I started out
listing all the projects I was going to write for the year and where I was going
to submit them. I stayed on track for a while, faithfully following my list.
But then some projects sold and some didn’t. I submitted to new places and kept
writing. I made revisions and resubmitted. I got an idea for a new story and
wrote that as well, even though it wasn’t on my goal list. I finally realized
that while I like to write down my current projects to keep track of them, I
can’t project too far in the future because there are just too many variables.
But since the beginning of 2013, I’ve written two completely new novellas and
sold them (one of them, Voluptuous, released Sept 6, the other, The Cottage
Next Door, will probably release late in 2014), revised and sold another
novella (Playing for Real releases Feb 4th), and completed a novel that
released this week (Her Royal Masquerade). I am currently writing the follow
up, Her Royal Bodyguard, and my goal is to have the first draft finished by the
end of the year.
I guess that’s
the long way of saying, “Yes.”
Who or what has been your biggest
influence as a writer?
Wow. That’s hard to say.
I’ve been reading since forever, have been writing almost
nearly that long and I’ve probably been influenced by every book I’ve ever
read. I started writing mysteries when I was still in school, because that’s
what I read. I loved Phyllis A Whitney back then. I gave up the idea of writing
mysteries when I discovered romance, but some of her books had a real gothic
flavor and that’s probably what got me interested in romance in the first place.
How long does it take you to
write a 50-60,000 word manuscript?
None of them are exactly
the same. Some stories just flow better than others. A general answer would
probably be about 3 months. The last book I wrote took about that long but
during those 12 weeks I also revised and resubmitted two manuscripts and
completed edits on a third.
Blurb:
Time is running out for Prince Vittorio. His father’s health is
failing and he must find a royal bride. Fast. He’s never forgotten his glimpse
of a beautiful Scandinavian princess and lures her to his Mediterranean country
with an invitation to his father’s birthday ball. He’d planned to propose a
marriage agreement as cold as her icy reputation, but then he discovers she's
as colorful and warm as a summer sunset. The heat between them flares red-hot
and when she allows him to seduce her, Vittorio sees his future unfolding just
as he had planned. But what he doesn’t know is that the woman in his bed is not
a princess at all.
The last thing schoolteacher Mia Holmberg expects when she
masquerades as her royal cousin is to be swept off her feet by a charming
prince. The incredible night in Vittorio’s arms is like a fairy tale come true,
but she’d never want the life of a real princess, with all its pomp and
politics. Knowing they can never have a future together, she slips out of his
bed and back to reality, where she belongs.
But Vittorio discovers the deception and kidnaps Mia back to his
palace, demanding she be his mistress until the real princess appears. Despite
her attempts to stay aloof, Mia soon learns there’s more to the prince than
arrogance and attitude, but now she’s in danger of falling in love with a man
she can never have.
Excerpt:
Mia sipped her champagne and tried not to be affected by the man
sitting next to her. He was so…so everything. Charming. Gorgeous. Commanding.
Seductive. One dance and she hadn’t been able to control her reaction to him.
What had made her press against him like that?
To rub against his obvious erection? With a man she’d only known a
few minutes. She was certain even Birgitte wouldn’t have been that
forward.
She’d had to get off the dance floor, had to get out of his arms
before she did something outrageous like beg him to take her to some dark
corner and ease the ache he was causing within her. But tonight she was
Birgitte. No free pass at this ball. She had to act the princess.
But she longed to be out on the dance floor again. The music was so
stirring. She found herself swaying with the beat of the song. The ballad was
one she didn’t recognize, one she’d certainly never heard back home. The melody
called to her on a visceral level. There was no logical reason why. Music was
that way sometimes. It couldn’t have anything to do with Vittorio.
“What are you thinking?” he asked softly, leaning over to murmur the
question softly in her ear.
“Simply enjoying the music,” she replied, trying to ignore the
delightful shiver caused by the whisper of his warm breath along her skin.
He slipped his arm over the top of her chair, letting his fingers
brush her bare shoulders.
Just a simple touch like that sent her heart racing. “Would you like
to dance again?” he asked in a seductive tone that suggested he might be
talking about more than just a dance.
“I’m not sure I dare,” she admitted, keeping her gaze on the
musicians.
“Oh?” With one finger, he touched her chin and turned her face his
way. He shot her a wickedly sexy grin. “You don’t seem to be the type to back
away from a challenge.”
She leaned back against his warm arm. She couldn’t help herself. “So
I should consider another dance with you as a challenge?”
One lazy finger traced circles on her bare shoulder, teasing a
shiver to run along her skin. “For me, the challenge will be pretending I have
no more interest in you than any other guest at the palace tonight.”
Mia swallowed to moisten her suddenly dry mouth. Pretending she was
Birgitte made it slightly easier for her to hold his gaze and slowly smile.
“And what interest do you have in the princess of Stagatland?”
“I assure you, my interest in you is strictly as a beautiful,
enticing woman. That you are the lovely princess is simply an additional
benefit.”
She knew better. He wouldn’t be flirting with her if he knew she was
a commoner, no one of importance. If he ever saw her in her usual outfits, the
bulky sweaters and heavy boots, he wouldn’t look at her twice. The knowledge
should have upset her, but it had been a fact of life for her since she was old
enough to realize that her cousin was treated differently than she was. Mia had
always had to step back and let Birgitte have all the attention, no matter if
it was a royal affair or simply a family gathering.
To be called beautiful and enticing by such a handsome, charming man
gave her often bruised ego a boost. What harm would it do to soak up an easy
compliment? He probably tossed them away like crumbs to the birds. A man such
as Prince Vittorio surely had had his choice of beautiful women over the years.
He knew how to charm. Seduce. She told herself she could enjoy it without
making more of it than what was intended.
Birgitte would probably take the compliment as her due. No sense
gushing over the flattering remarks. She was a princess. Act like it, she
admonished herself.
“I suppose I could take a chance and join you on the dance floor
once more,” she said, trying to keep her tone light and flirty, and not betray
the fact that she was aching to be back in his arms again.
“I like a woman who’s willing to take a risk.” The faint lines at
the corners of his eyes crinkled with his smile and she wanted to reach out and
brush her finger over them. Oh, she liked him. More than she should.
Grab the moment, Mia. Tomorrow you’ll be back home, shivering from
the freezing cold instead of the arousing touch of a handsome prince.
Vittorio rose and graciously helped her to her feet. His commanding
presence threatened to take her breath away. How could she resist him at
all?
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Bio:
Natasha Moore fell in love with the written word as soon as she could read. As she grew up, she discovered romance and now enjoys the chance to add some extra sizzle to her stories. She writes sexy contemporary and erotic romance because she believes that stories of love and hope are important, and that there’s nothing better than a happy ending. She lives in New York State with her husband, her real life hero who is happy to tell everyone that he’s her inspiration.
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