TwoLips Reviews Interview with Cherise Sinclair

 A little over a year ago, Cherise Sinclair blew me away with her first book in her Shadowlands BDSM series for Loose Id.  Since then, Cherise has continued to grow as a writer and has started another series with the same publisher.  I’m not the only one at TLR who has massive love for this talented author.  Once you try one of her books, you’ll be drawn in to her wicked sense of humor, great characterization, and inventive plot ideas. Sit back and relax as we have a candid conversation about just where Ms. Sinclair gets her ideas!! Welcome to TLR, Cherise…..  

How important is it to have family support in your writing?  Do they know you write…erotica?

My children are whole-hearted supporters, especially when they want a critical eye for their school essays <g>. They don’t know what I write though. 

My husband is wonderful, and not only cheers me on, but enjoys (really, really enjoys!) helping out with various…um…techniques.   

How long did it take you from writing your first book to becoming a published author?

I’ve been telling stories since I terrified my little sisters with made-up ghost stories, but the first actual completed book must have been about ten years ago.  So it was about five years to being in print (and, no, you may not know my other name).  It was another few years before the erotica market sucked me in. 

What do you feel is the biggest misconception about BDSM?  Hmmm…where do you do your research?

I think a lot of people don’t understand the huge range that BDSM encompasses.   For example, pain in BDSM can go from absolutely none to a love bite to a spanking to a very bloody whipping. An interest in dominance/submission can run the gamut from a bit of rough sex in the bedroom to being a master and slave.  Each relationship is a unique balancing act between the needs and desires of each partner.

As for research: Well, there’s hands-on, of course (my favorite way to research <g>), but I also have enthusiastic people who are willing to discuss any subject or technique that I don’t have experience with.   I absolutely adore your Masters of the Shadowlands series, Cherise.  Where did you get the inspiration for the series and can we expect more titles to come?

Oddly enough, I wrote the second in the series first after seeing an ad for a BDSM club’s beginner’s night and thinking that, if it was me trying out a club for the first time, I’d want an experienced Dom, not a newbie.  And so Dark Citadel was born, but then Master Z, the owner, was just so…compelling, that I ended up writing his story almost at the same time, so Club Shadowlands ended up being first.  Your titles feature very dominant alpha men. 

Would you ever do a D/s romance with a female Domme?

Probably only if they were a switch—truly a switch who wanted to be submissive at times. 

Did you know that most Dommes have -- one time or another -- had to listen to a wanna-be Dom saying, “If you were taken by a real man like me, you’d be a submissive.”  Argh! 

No, they certainly wouldn’t and they’d probably make the guy eat his whip.  LOL! 

What turns you off more- a wimpy hero or a whiny heroine? 

Oh, dear.  Probably a wimpy hero.  After all, if my hero wouldn’t step out in front to protect me, I’d probably whine too -- and then show him how it’s done and kick him out of the hero box.   

If you could switch places with a heroine from one of your books, who would you choose and why? 

Well, I really loved Beth’s yard service because I’m a gardener. But I adore Master Z, so I’d want to end up with him.  LOL!   

Our TLR Reviewers simply loved Master of the Mountain! 

Do you have plans on returning to this series and if so whose stories can we salivate in anticipation for? 

Right now, I’m concentrating on the next Shadowlands since some of my readers are beginning to make threats. 

After that…well, Logan’s brother, Jake, needs a happy ending. After all, a Dom who can command a sub one night and bring her toast the next should have someone of his own to love, right?   

Do you ever fear you may be going too far with a particular love scene and if so, how do you rein the scene in? 

Oh, constantly!  I keep waiting for my editor to tell me to ease up – and she never has.  So maybe I should take the scenes a little further? 

But I keep getting ‘have ice cubes and a fan available’ comments, so maybe they’re hot enough. <g>  

Are any of your characters based on real people or events?

Well…I will admit that a couple of my daughter’s ruder ex-boyfriends have suffered in my books. In fact, I killed one of them off and derived an inordinate amount of pleasure doing so. But really, my characters are mixtures of those I’ve known.

What’s the worst/best job you’ve ever had? 

Writing, of course, for both sides of the question.   

Would you ever collaborate with another author?  Who would be your dream partner? 

I don’t think I could collaborate; I’m too anal about my writing. Now my dream partner might not be a writer.  There’s a couple of Doms out there… Well, I wouldn’t mind snuggling down against a hard chest and taking notes about the BDSM life. Now that’s collaboration done right. J   (don’t tell my DH this, all right?)

Do you do anything special to celebrate when a new book comes out? 

I don’t.  Isn’t that terrible? 

Which books/authors are on your “keeper” shelf?  Has there been an author who has inspired you? 

MY DH and I tried to count our books and discovered we’re running close to 2 thousand, so I have waaay too many keepers.  Some of my favorites are Patricia Briggs and her Mercy series, JR Ward, Guy Gavriel Kay and his fantasies, and I adore Joey Hill’s Ice Queen series.   

How much does a reviewer’s reaction mean to you as a writer? 

I know I should say it doesn’t matter, but I angst over those damn reviews -- LOL -- dissecting them to see what I should do better, where I’m falling down as a writer, what the reviewed liked.  My readers are wonderful at telling me their favorite parts or if I venture too far a field for comfort, but reviewers are…perhaps a little more blunt about it <g>.   

What other creative outlets do you have besides writing?   

I read (of course) everything and anything and garden.   

What advice can you give to aspiring writers? 

Okay, I’ll be as straight-forward with this answer as I want people to be with me.  First: don’t be ‘sensitive’. Get some crit partners, tell them to be totally honest, listen to what they’re saying, and then use what seems valid. Second: don’t keep rewriting the same book over and over. Finish it, send it out, and start on something new.  Third: write and don’t quit.   

What upcoming projects can your fans (like me) look forward to? 

The Dom’s Dungeon should come out later this fall. It was born from a Loose Id author brain-storming session about vacation exchanges.

Being a tad kinky, I wondered what would happen if a woman found a BDSM dungeon in her vacation house…and what would happen if the Dom returned unexpectedly and found her trying out the spanking bench.  J   

Where can fans find you?

www.CheriseSinclair.com,
www.myspace.com/CheriseSinclair
http://twitter.com/CheriseSinclair  Now to some ‘fun’ questions to get to know you better.  Don’t be shy…it’s just pillow talk!!  What’s better to have…girth or width?

Is this a trick question?  Don’t you mean length or width?  Anyway, I asked my husband which he thought I preferred length or width. He said my answer should be, "Yes."   <g>   

What swear word turns you off? 

I hate when a man calls a woman the c**t’ word or b*ch.   

What do you crave after sex? 

Lots and lots of snuggles and pillow talk.   

What do you find sexy in a man?  In a woman? 

Oh, sure, you can read my books and not know what I find sexy?  All right, the first thing would be, I like a man, not a boy. Someone responsible and honest and secure enough in himself to be able to cherish his woman. 

And, oh, yes, I like powerful, dominant males. Have I mentioned that?  <g>   

What’s sexy in a woman?   

Caring, inner toughness, a sense of humor

Do you have any strange habits or talents? 

People like to confide in me and tell me secrets.  I’m not sure why, and I’m not sure if it’s a talent or a curse.

What’s a guilty pleasure you have? 

Oreo cookies and eating the white insides first.

 What’s your favorite sex toy?  Ever used it in a scene? 

When it comes down to it, I like all the toys attached to my DH – cock, tongue, fingers <g>.  They’re all mine and all fun to play with.  After that (and with those), anything that vibrates can add to the enjoyment.

I must admit, I’ve been eyeing something called a Sybian with thoughts of putting it in one of the next books.   

Tell us what would be your perfect romantic evening. 

A beach cabin over a roaring surf, a cracking fire in the fireplace, a soft bed, a smooth wine, a gorgeous, tough man who adores me (my husband would work, yes).  Cuffs and ropes optional.   

Name three things you couldn’t live without. 

Chocolate, books, sex. 

Finish this sentence:  If I could change one thing about myself, it would be….

I want one of those perfect android bodies that haven’t been invented yet -- one that never aches or ages, can go without sleep and not doze off during a boring lecture, never has to find a bathroom halfway down the interstate, and whose stomach doesn’t growl at inconvenient moments.  Being able to bend iron bars and leap tall building in a single bound wouldn’t be bad either.