Interview Kay Layton Sisk

by

Joanie MacNeil

Hello Kay, Yours is a name I know from the past.  J  Good to chat with you again.

1) Congratulations on the sale of The Mermaid And The Eagle. Tell us about the story and your central characters.

Clarissa McBride is half of the highly successful team behind a children’s series, The Mermaid And The Dolphin. When her husband and partner dies in a boating accident, she blames herself and hides away for a year. Just as she’s ready to get on with her life, she meets Mick Caruthers, a man with a shady past and a penchant for watching over her. She thinks he’s bad for her but can’t believe he’s a bad man.

2) Where do you find the inspiration for your characters?

How trite is this: they come to me. I don’t base characters on anyone I know.

3) How well do you develop your characters before you start writing your stories or do you learn about them as you go?

I have a feeling for them before I begin: I know their basics and what they want. Oftentimes, I don’t know what all they will do to get it until I’m writing the book.

4) Are you a plotter--how do you pull your stories together?

I am pure seat-of-my-pants. I take the adventure first, then present it to my reader.

5) Is romance your favorite genre to write?

Yes. You can’t beat a happy ending.

6) What kinds of books do you like to read?

Mainly, I read romance, although I follow a couple of mystery series. If I know a book is going to end badly (it might be justice, but it’s not satisfying), I donate to the library.

7) Of all of your books, do you have a favorite story, a favorite hero and/or heroine?

It would have to Eddie T and Lyla from Lyla’s Song. He is so unredeemable--and he doesn’t want to be redeemed--that it’s a stretch to think even a good woman like Lyla could do it.

8) What was the best piece of advice you received when you began your writing career?

Finish the book and don’t give up.

9) Do you have any other tips or advice you’d like to share?

See above.

10) Tell us about your next project.

I’m jotting down ideas for a comedy romance. I so enjoyed writing A Suite Deal, my only true comedic novel, that I’d like to do it again.

Thank you for your time and best of luck with The Mermaid And The Eagle.

And thank you.