Beverly and Tamara: Welcome to SSLY. Thanks so much for joining us today Katy. Let’s get down to it shall we?

Tamara: What do you HAVE to have when you are writing?

Seltzer. Preferably Orange-Vanilla flavored.

Beverly: When did you start to write?

I started writing short stories as part of a local continuing education class in January 2012.

Tamara: What do you think are the qualities that make up a “hero”?

A total devotion to the woman he loves – against his will, against his better judgment – because he can’t do a thing about it except surrender to it.

Beverly: Can you describe your favorite character? And which of your books is he/she in? How do you come up with your characters?

I love the alpha male heroes in Lisa Kleypas’s books. Derek Craven is a real favorite. He’s brooding and sexy and feels unworthy of goodness or love in his life. But when it finds him, after a lot of protest, he accepts defeat and it’s heavenly to watch him stop struggling and lean into love.

I don’t know how I come up with them. They sort of come to me. I don’t work hard sketching them before writing.

Tamara: What are the hardest scenes for you to write? Suspense? Sex? Dialogue? And why?

Sex used to be harder (no pun intended) but like anything you do a lot, it’s gotten easier. I think informational scenes and bridge scenes are tough. Sometimes you need to give the reader information, but I’m always scared too much exposition will be boring.

Beverly: What writer, if any, influenced how you write?

When I get bogged down in dialogue cues, I remember Vonnegut and Hemingway and force myself to keep it tight and sharp.

Tamara: Who would you choose as your “book boyfriend”? From what book? Author?

Hmm. I don’t know. I’ve never thought about it before! Maybe Noah from “The Notebook” – he was a forever and ever kind of guy.

Beverly: What is the kinkiest thing you’ve ever done? Or would like to? What? We are all about the love!

Oh, for heaven’s sake! You two are naughty!! Well…it included a rental car on a public road in the daylight. Other than that, my lips are sealed.

Beverly: Oh I can hear the sirens now… 😀

Tamara: What are your favorite types of heroines? Do you like the damsel in distress who needs saving or the kick-ass variety? Why?

I like sensitive, bright, thoughtful women who use their brains to solve problems.

Beverly: What was your worst date ever?

My aunt set me up with this doctor in New York City. He told me to meet him at The Pierre for lunch and I was really excited because that’s one of the nicest hotels in New York, and I had wild imaginings about a romantic lunch that would last for hours and we’d go stroll in Central Park and as the sun set, we’d… When I got there, he snuck me into a doctor’s convention that had a free buffet lunch. He proceeded to chat with his friends at our table for the ensuing hour and then returned to the convention. It was pretty awkward.

Tamara: What a bum! If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you want to have with you? (you have food, water, shelter, all the necessities, so nothing mundane) I’m assuming no doctor – at least not that one!

A fully loaded Kindle. My family. A down duvet.

Beverly: What is your “guilty pleasure”?

Chocolate chip scones with Café Americana.

Tamara: What dream or goal have you yet to realize?

Writing a bestseller.

Beverly: What was you most embarrassing moment?

I have a 5-year-old and an 8-year-old. Embarrassing moments are rampant at this point in my life. Everyone at my son’s school knows I am a romance writer. That’s earning me some interesting look lately. LOL!

Tamara: If you were a color what would you be and why?

Yellow, I guess. Like sunshine. I try to be a glass-half-full sort of gal.

Beverly: Who has influenced how you perceive love? Why?

My parents. They’ve been married forever. They definitely didn’t think of marriage as having any sort of “out” clause. Theirs is an absolute sort of love, and it’s what I wanted in my life too. Happily, it’s what I found.

Tamara and Beverly: Okay. We are SSLY so I have to ask. Who loves you?

My husband. My kids. My parents. My friends and extended family. Hopefully my readers too.

Now for some quick fun questions:

Boxers or briefs? Boxers
Coffee or Tea? Coffee (decaf)
Tall, dark and handsome or Blond and buff? Blond and buff
Hairy chest or smooth? Smooth
Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate
Kinky or Sweet? Sweet
Fast or slow? Fast
Public or private? Hmm….
Top or bottom? It depends….

By Proxy
by Katy Regnery

Blurb:
Stubbornly small-town Jenny Lindstrom has misgivings when she promises to stand proxy in her best friend’s wedding—misgivings that are fulfilled when tall, handsome Sam Kelley walks into the courthouse an hour late. In order to keep her promise, an afternoon favor turns into a weekend of startling but undeniable attraction, threatening the well-ordered world that keeps her heart at arm’s length from any more pain.

Sam’s plan is to fly to Livingston, Montana, take vows for his favorite cousin, and return to Chicago as quickly as possible. But his plan is turned upside-down when he must spend a weekend with Jenny in Gardiner to keep his word. He doesn’t want to fall for the prim, proper schoolteacher whose small-town life seems to him like selling out, but the more time he spends with her, the harder it is to say good-bye.

When city and country come together for Christmas, the unexpected gift is true love.

Buy Links:

To buy on Amazon (for a Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/By-Proxy-Heart-Montana-ebook/dp/B00FDXPUYU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1379968293&sr=8-1&keywords=by+proxy+katy+regnery

To buy on Barnes & Noble (for a Nook): http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/by-proxy-katy-regnery/1116875185?ean=2940045253031

To buy on iTunes (for an iPhone or iPad): https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/by-proxy/id703583019?mt=11

To buy on Smashwords (available versions for all devices): https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/355073

Website: http://www.katyregnery.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/KatyRegnery

Twitter: KatyRegnery