Heather Elizabeth King

It’s All About the Research

Authors of erotic romance often get teased about what kind of research they might delve into for the sake of their books – it’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it…**snicker, giggle, knowing wink.**

The research my husband and I engaged in for this spicy romantic suspense is a little different – some might say, it’s been our entire lives. We’ve both taught at universities (that’s where we met) and we know the academic life from the inside. The choices and struggles faced by our professorial hero, Anthropologist Matt Bayfield, are more familiar than we might like to admit.

Hubs is a sociologist with a specialty in criminology. I promise he’s drawn on this background immensely in creating our spunky female undercover cop, Nancy Appleby, in plotting the trajectory of the crimes and the mystery of solving it, and especially in understanding our truly creepy villain (who I won’t name, of course – that would spoil everything!).

We’ve both immersed ourselves in understand Celtic culture and history for years – long before we envisioned this novel. Hubs has Welsh roots, and mine are Scotch-Irish on one side, so we feel an ancestral pull to that era and its understanding of seasons and cycles. It was easy to hand that passion over to our ersatz professor. We won’t say more about how it’s woven into the plot, but we think readers will like it.

We had a close call researching the technology we’ve handed our resourceful cop – hubs found himself on a website requesting security clearance for more information. Backed right out of that one! But found what we needed to know without tripping any more alarms.

The North Woods, where we’ve set the novel? A place we’ve lived and loved, and left, when the winters grew too much for us to handle. But while we lived there, we threw ourselves with a passion into the cross country skiing, snowshoeing, and crisp winter outings Nancy enjoys so much. Writing those scenes was like watching snippets from our own life on the screen.

The Unmasking was originally released in 2008 under a different pen name; rights reverted to us when the contract ran out, and we’ve decided to re-issue it as “ourselves.” We’ve thoroughly re-edited the book and incorporated helpful feedback from our beta readers

Our tag line is Erotic Romance for Two, Three, or More. Most of our published work has focused on the “three or more” side of the equation. We’re happy to offer a book focused on the “two” element, and we think readers will find the sex is no less sizzling. And no, we’re not going to share any research we might have indulged in to write those scenes.

The Unmasking, by Adriana Kraft

February 15, 2014

B&B Publishing

ISBN  978-0-9894693-6-4;   ASIN   B00IDVB6KQ

Romantic Suspense, 87,000 words

Heat rating: Four flames

BLURB

Whose mask will crumble first—

the enigmatic professor of Celtic Studies,

the undercover cop masquerading as a co-ed,

or the campus stalker,

biding his time to strike again?

Is anthropology professor Matt Bayfield the Blackthorn College rapist, or a potential ally? Aloof and unapproachable, Matt has academic ambitions. He can’t escape Blackthorn College soon enough, and he doesn’t want any entanglements to slow down his exit.

Nancy Appleby would like nothing more than to solve the string of campus rape cases before Thanksgiving so she can go home. The last thing she wants is a relationship to complicate her life—but she’ll settle for a fling, especially when the sex sizzles.

The stalker has his own carefully crafted timetable, with a special date just for Nancy. Can Matt and Nancy force him out of his hidey-hole before it’s too late?

REVIEWS

Four and a half stars at Romance Junkies: From beginning to end, THE UNMASKING is a fascinating tale…I was intrigued at how the writing team is able to intertwine a love story with such horrifying circumstances in startling clarity. One of the many things I adored about this story is that the main characters are flawed. They both make judgment errors and their mistakes and assumptions lead to some emotionally trying scenes that had me eagerly reading to find out how they were going to solve their conflicts - or at several points if they even would be able to remain together. If you enjoy romantic suspense novels then I can definitely recommend THE UNMASKING. Chrissy D.

Five Stars at Amazon: One of the best stories ever written by Adriana Kraft…a truly great read. Could not put it down until I finished it. Amy B.

Five Stars at Goodreads: The suspense is so well done you don't know who the bad guy is until it's revealed in the book. The action is fast paced and kept my interest to the very end. Could not put the book down. Donna H.

BUY LINK

http://www.amazon.com/The-Unmasking-Adriana-Kraft-ebook/dp/B00IDVB6KQ

Chapter One

Who will be the next victim?

Nancy Appleby scanned the co-eds in the small lecture hall. Each could be his next prey. Each looked much younger than she remembered being as a full-time student. Each woman hung on Professor Bayfield’s well crafted words.

Was it the topic, Celtic Myths and Rituals, or was it the aloofness of the tall, dark-haired lecturer with the strong protruding chin that mesmerized? He did command attention. Although his tone was mild, Bayfield played with his audience like a polished actor. Clearly he was in control. Though he gestured but rarely, he moved like an athlete, comfortable in his body.

Nancy jotted notes on a yellow pad pretending to be no different than anyone else in the room. She glanced up at Bayfield, whose eyes had settled on her; they were piercing and inquisitive. Then he shifted his gaze, but he’d noticed her, was thinking about her. Why? She’d done everything she could to blend in. He hadn’t seemed particularly troubled by her presence, just curious.

Nancy redirected her attention to the individuals sitting in front of her. She’d arrived early to claim an aisle seat in the back row. The raised auditorium layout provided an advantageous observation post. About sixty women and twenty men were in attendance, no doubt a decent turnout. Blackthorn College had a student body of less than two thousand.

Nancy scribbled more notes and then focused on the men in the room.

Was he in the lecture hall? Would he strike again, tonight? Or would the rapist stay in his hole, biding his time?

ABOUT ADRIANA KRAFT

Adriana Kraft is the pen name for a husband/wife team writing Erotic Romance for Two, Three or More. The award-winning pair has published over thirty erotic romance novels and novellas to outstanding reviews. Romantic pairings include straight m/f, lesbian, bisexual, ménage and polyamory, in both contemporary and paranormal settings.

ADRIANA KRAFT ON THE WEB

Website: http://adrianakraft.com

Blog: http://adrianakraft.com/blog

Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Adriana-Kraft/182846025133440

Twitter http://twitter.com/AdrianaKraft

You're a published author and you're at a writer's conference, mingling with your peers when someone asks the question, "So what do you write?" You say erotic romance, and receive a look that makes you feel like you've just admitted to a pastime of killing babies. Among certain groups, admitting to writing horror isn't much better. As a matter of fact, admitting you write commercial fiction is often perceived as tantamount to selling your soul to the prince of darkness. The people staring down their noses at you are writers of "literary" fiction.

Any time I've had one of these experiences I've often wondered where the disgust comes from. Yeah, I write commercial fiction, yeah, I write about sex and I'm awfully good at it, why do you have a problem with what I do? Is there really one type of fiction that is better than another type of fiction? There are millions upon millions of readers out there, all searching for a great book that will take them on a journey. And they don't all enjoy reading the same genre.

For years I wrote under the pseudonym of Adrienne Kama and I did well. I had a bestselling series, then sold to Ellora's Cave, one of the top publishers of erotic fiction. But Author Shame was something that dogged me. For obvious reasons my friends with kids couldn't have any of my books out in the open--they had to be hidden in closets. I couldn't tell anyone at church what I wrote. What would they think of me? What would my co-workers think? Author Shame was something I battled. Back in 2006 an editor from NAL contacted me (yes, contacted ME) about writing a book that consisted of a series of erotic romance novellas, but by that time my Author Shame was so bad I couldn't adequately focus on the project...and I lost the deal. Stupid mistake.

Today, I write novels the way they need to be written. As my mom says, I'm not writing Heather Elizabeth King's story, but the story of my characters. Sometimes they swear (I don't swear so this was something I had to make peace with long ago, too! lol), sometimes they murder, and sometimes they have sex. I realize that if I'm going to be a writer I have to be fearless when it comes to telling a story. I have to be genuine. I have to kick Author Shame to the curb. I'm accountable to God, nobody else.

If there's something that you enjoy doing  (and it doesn't hurt anyone) and you do it well, don't let anyone shame you out of doing it. This is your life. You only get one. Don't be afraid to live!

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="195"] Cover of On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft[/caption]

I recently finished reading Stephen King's On Writing for a second time. This book is a great resource for writers. I've been writing professionally for about ten years now, and it reminded me of some things that I've forgotten. One of those things is Honesty.

Writing with Honesty seems like an easy thing to do, but often I get caught up in what I want to happen as opposed to what needs to happen. On Writing reminded me to listen to my characters when I write. Don't just write dialogue for them, listen to them. Let them tell me what they'd say and how they'd say it. This sounds very woo woo, but it's true. Once you know your characters and understand their motivations, they speak to you. My job, if I want to write with Honesty, is to listen to them. The stories always seem much more genuine and real when I write this way.

You can always tell when a writer isn't listening to their character. Take a horror movie. You have a character who has behaved with intelligence throughout the movie, but when the creature busts into her house, she runs UPSTAIRS. Typically this happens because the writer has something planned to happen upstairs and can find no sensible way to get the characters upstairs where all this scary stuff is going to happen. So, the writer simply turns the character into a moron and has her run up the stairs instead of out the front door. Things like this always ring false for the reader/viewer.

So, I'm listening more closely to my characters and trying to write them and their story as honestly as I can.

Related articles

 So I've done it! I've registered for the New England Crime Bake in November! This will be the first mega conference I've been to since the 2007 RT. That was a great experience because I not only went, but I got to be on 2 panels. Since restarting my writing career as Heather Elizabeth King and leaving Adrienne Kama behind it's been like starting over, so I won't be on any panels at the Crime Bake. Mystery fiction is an entirely new genre of fiction for me and I'm still finding my footing.

Tainted Love is a supernatural mystery/urban fantasy, and working to promo this book has been a lot different than the others. That's why things like conferences and writing organizations (like Sisters in Crime) are great. You not only get to network, but you get to meet other writers doing the same thing you do.

So I opted to take the train to the conference. I love rail travel and this seemed a fun option. I'm taking an express on the way there, but on the way back I have to change trains in New York. So, for the New York to VA route I got a roomette. It's only 8 hours from NY to where I live in VA, but for me the roomette makes for a far more enjoyable ride than coach. I can still go to the dining car and walk around the train when I want human contact, but if I want to be alone I have my own little space to go to. I've been in one before and love it. The new roomettes have the added bonus of having their own mini bathrooms as well as their own climate control. I'll be posting pics of the trip, so you'll get to see everything. Till then, here's what one looks like:

I'm excited...and scared. Traveling to a new city in MA alone could be intimidating, but when I think of all I hope to accomplish a little fear won't hold me back!!!

Happy Reading!!

Related articles