Interview Kay Layton Sisk

by

Sherry Derr-Wille

1) When reading for pleasure what is your favorite genre?

What do you mean 'when reading for pleasure?' <vbg> I _always_ read for pleasure! Well, at least since college. And I'll read romance over everything else, although I enjoy women's fiction--with an element of romance of course!

2) Since I e-mailed you and asked how old your heroine is, I do know she is a bit older than what you normally find in a romance novel. What made you decide to write a more mature woman?

I nearly always write a more mature woman because I find I can identify with her better than a young woman in her 20s. She's had time for more of life's experiences, good or bad.

3) What are the characteristics you like the most about your heroine?

Jemma Lovelace is dependable and family-oriented--but enough is enough. When she finally decides that her family has taken advantage of her all they are going to, she works for a gracious solution.

4) Is your hero tall, dark and handsome or is he like someone you would really meet?

Eddie C Samuels is tall, blond, and way too handsome for his own good. I suppose you could end up meeting someone like C, but unless it was after Jemma had hold of him, you might not like him.

5) I know you have written many books for Wings. Which is your most favorite and why? (Don’t you just hate that question?)

Ooh, I like all my children! But... I think Lyla's Song if I have to pick. The hero is at a huge fork in the road of his life and he knows he has to choose the right path--or quite literally, he'll die. He finds the strength within himself to turn himself around and be worthy of the heroine's love.

6) Can you tell us a bit about the location of this story?

Jemma's Heart is the second of a six book series to be anchored in the Lake Texoma area of north central Texas. I live near there and have placed my fictitious town of Jinks on the lake. The cabin that Fletch buys in this book (and that almost becomes a character in subsequent books) was owned by a dear friend of mine who died last year. She was thrilled I'd put her lake home in a novel.

7) If you could be stranded on a desert island with one of your heroes, which one would you pick and why?

Cesar Osorio from One Year Past Perfect. Costa Rican singer, sensitive man. Need I say more? Now if I wanted to survive for a long time, I'd have to pick Mick from a book Wings will publish in the fall of 06.

8) When you write do you like solitude or do you have music going in the background?

Solitude. I can edit with music, but I have to write in silence.

9) Do you work on more than one story at once?

No.

10) This one is just for fun. What is your favorite thing to order when you go out for the evening?

Seafood. I've never mastered cooking it well, so I'll head to the shrimp and crab side of the menu. Once I figured out how to make to-die-for pancakes, then I stopped ordering them for breakfast when we were out. If I learn to do presentable seafood, I'll have to switch my favorite thing to order. So, I'll probably remain ignorant. <g>