Alyson's Satin Sheets Romance Interview with Coming Home author Paloma Beck

We are so very lucky to have Paloma Beck visiting!  She has two recent releases - Coming Home and Holiday Gem.  Today we are chatting with her regarding Coming Home and her inner muse.

All About You:

Alyson:  Welcome Paloma and thank you for taking the time to do this.  Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you’ve been writing?

Paloma:  I’ve been writing since high school when all that teenage angst is erupting inside. I didn’t know what to do with it so I wrote it all down. I wrote poetry and short stories for the high school magazine. One of my teachers was Wally Lamb who was writing his first book at the time. I fell in love with the idea of becoming an author. I took a hiatus but after taking the long route, I did it. I began writing full-time about eight months ago and love it.

Alyson:  That is really exciting.  So what is the best environment for you to write in?

Paloma:  I have a home office on the third floor where it’s bright and I can see my gardens. I write on a laptop and am often still in my pajamas until lunch. Depending on the scene/ book, I listen to music and have quite an eclectic play list. There is always at least one of my sons’ cats bathing in the sun and my pug, Oliver, snoring at my feet.

Alyson:  Sounds very creativity-inducing! As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Paloma:  A mother. I wanted to have a family to care for. I also considered becoming a teacher because I love to learn. That all changed in high school when I took my first creative writing class and was sold on writing. Then I constructed the plan to teach English-and write in my spare time-because teaching was a proper career. I planned to be the first in my family to go to college and I knew becoming an author was a long shot so I opted for the safety of a practical career. Years later, when I actually fulfilled my dream of becoming a mother, the writer in me re-emerged.

Alyson:  So have you ever written under a nom de plume?

Paloma:  Paloma Beck is a pen name. I wanted to keep my professional writing career separate from family life. I live in a small, conservative town where I’m active in my children’s schools as well as the community and church. Keeping them separate just kept everything less complicated.

Alyson:  Sounds like a smart choice.  Tell us about what have you had published to-date.

Paloma:  The first three books in my paranormal series, Seven Sin Sisters, were released in 2012. The next is scheduled for February 2013. The series will be completed by the end of Summer 2013. I also have a contemporary trilogy about three brothers. The first book, Coming Home, was released in November 2012. I hope to have the next completed by Fall 2013. And, drum roll please, my 2012 NaNo project, Hold My Hand, will be my first self-published book that will hopefully be released in the Spring.

Alyson:  Having read Coming Home and a couple of your Sin Sisters books, I am nothing if not excited about your plans!  What was the feeling like when you saw your published book for the first time?

Paloma:  I thought my heart could burst from my chest. It was a culmination of years of building towards a dream. Right now, my books are only ebook. I’m thinking the next milestone will be seeing them in print.

Alyson:  That has to be an amazing feeling.  Do you think you have pieces of work that you think will never see light of day?

Paloma:  Yes. I’ve gone through all my old writing, salvaged anything from long ago years and filed the rest for when I need to remember how far I’ve come or need a good laugh.

Alyson:  I imagine most writers would feel similarly. Has anything really surprised you about your writing life?

Paloma:  The business side of being a published writing is so counter-productive to actually writing. I’ve learned to set aside two hours in the morning for marketing, social media, and all other business-type responsibilities. Then the rest of my day (before I pick the boys up from school) is all mine to write.

Alyson:  I really like how you divide your time! I have to remember that. ;) Do you think you have a writing quirk, so to speak? 

Paloma:  I edit my first draft while I write it. There’s no way around it. I’ve tried everything but I can’t keep typing if the error is flashing at my on the screen. What this means though is that the version my editor gets is only draft two, instead of what might be more like draft three for most writers.

Alyson:  What is your favorite saying, phrase or quote?

Paloma:  Once the mind has been stretched by a new idea, it will never again return to its original size. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

Alyson:  Ooh great quote.  So what books are you reading now?

Paloma:  Donna Grant’s Warrior series. It’s great. The warriors are hot and the action is quick-paced. I’m enjoying it though it’s taking me awhile to get through them because I’ve hit a busy patch as two books in various stages have hit my desk.

Alyson:  Ooh Highlanders!  Yum!  lol  So if you couldn’t be an author, what would your ideal career be?

Paloma:  Organizational Designer. I love to organize things. In fact, sometimes while plotting, I’ll organize a closet or an area that needs re-organization. My friends laugh at my home because it is the epitome of organized but I laugh at them when they can’t find something that I can have at my fingertips in a second.

Alyson:  Oh I love it!  Organization is such a wonderful thing and that would be an wonderful alternitive career.  So wanna share a deep dark Paloma secret with us? ;)

Paloma:  Some of my writing comes from my real life… yep, that’s as good as you get. You can fill it in with your imagination. I know if you read erotic romance, you must have a naughty imagination!

All About Coming Home:

Alyson:  So fill us in on your current release.

Paloma:  Coming Home is the first adult romance book I wrote despite not being the first published. It’s the first book in a series surrounding Rachel Porter, a romance writer. She’s told her three sons tales of finding their true loves since they were just boys. Now as men, they have yet to discover their soul mates but it seems coming home to mother is causing that to change.

Alyson:  Where did you come up with the idea for your book?

Paloma:  It came from this image I have of myself living on a lake as a reclusive author. Someone asked if I’d get lonely and I said my sons would visit me. Then I played with the idea a bit over the next few days and Ryan’s character came to me.

Alyson:  And what an impressive character too!  What was the hardest part of writing it?

Paloma:  I let it all fall into place too perfectly. I was too close to Ryan as a character so when he ran up against an obstacle, I solved it too quickly for him instead of allowing it to run its course. He needed to learn from mistake and readers needed to watch that but I treated him like my own son at first.

Alyson:  Really?  Well, you worked it all out nicely.  Do you feel you learned anything from writing it?

Paloma:  It made me think about my own sons and how their lives will be uniquely their own and their journeys not ones I’ll have too much of a say in. How I shape them as boys and young men before they go off and leave home is where I get to make a difference.

I also learned through adversity, you find strength. ;)

Alyson:  True, you do. Were you involved in the publishing process and have any say in the title and cover of your book?

Paloma:  I found Secret Cravings Publishing and it has been a blessing. I have much autonomy in the title and cover. They have a fabulous cover artist and sometimes I have a little tweak but she usually comes in perfect on draft one. The only change I made to the cover of Coming Home was to shorten Tyra’s nails and give her a lighter polish. You know, she’s not the flashy type.

Alyson:  I love that you know that about Tyra. ;)  Are there any deleted scenes that you loved but had to remove?

Paloma:  Yes. There’s an extra sequence of flashbacks with Ryan’s father that slowed down the flow of the book. I might use them in the other two books or maybe share as special extras on my site.

Alyson:  Oh I am sure your readers would love the chance.  Do you feel like there are certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with again?

Paloma:  I’m so grateful to be able to go back and tell each of the brother’s stories. I want to deal with the loss of a parent from the man’s POV so each of them will work through the loss in their own way in their books.

Alyson:  Knowing how much I liked each of them as individuals, I look forward to learning about all three. Which character really speaks the loudest to you? Do you think any of them clamor to be heard over the others?

Paloma:  Davis. That middle son is always the one who demands to stand out among the pack. Davis is going to be a hard nut to crack but I’m looking forward to his book. He shouts at me when I suggest we talk about how he’s feeling though. I suspect it will take one hell of a heroine to break (by that I mean love) him.

Alyson:   Mr. Tough Stuff himself.  I think you are absolutely right about the right woman and Davis.  Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

Paloma:  Coming from the same place, the same home, the same family doesn’t mean you have the same experience.

Alyson:  Thank you so much Paloma.  I know we all loved getting to know you better and I am sure everyone is looking forward to Coming Home!

Coming Home  
by Paloma Beck
http://romancebeckons.blogspot.com/  
Publisher: Secret Cravings Publishing 

Genre: Contemporary Romance  
Length: 142 pages


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Rachel Porter, a romance writer, has told her three sons tales of finding their true soul mate since they were just boys. She lives with the belief that there is but one match for every person. Now as men, they have yet to discover their soul mates. That is, until they come home…

Ryan Porter, Rachel’s oldest son, needs a change from his busy city lifestyle. After five years of living in New York and establishing his own real estate firm, something is still missing. When a family tragedy brings Ryan back to his family’s rural home, he meets Tyra. She just might be the catalyst for the change he needs, redirecting the course of his life. But first he must accept his relationship with his parents and embrace Tyra’s secrets.

Read my Review of Coming Home on Tuesday, January 22 right here on SSR!