steamy romance — Interviews with Book People

JJ Grice, Author

Genre: Romance, All kinds of romance. My current series is Contemporary Romance. But I have a series I will be releasing next that is Romantic suspense.

Publishing Type: Self Published

Latest Book: Beautiful Ghosts, The Maine Stay Series Book 4. I am also a part of Resisting You, An Anthology for Charity to help raise funds for Stop AAPI hate.

Upcoming Book: My next book is Breathless, The Maine Stay Series Book 5. It will be released on July 9th.

I started reading JJ Grice’s The Mainstay Series with book four because that is when I discovered her. I was intrigued how the book worked well as a stand-alone, but also developed the other characters so well that I wanted to go back and read from the beginning and at the same time I can’t wait to read the next book.

Currently, I am working on a five book series that I am both excited and nervous about! I know that a lot of authors write in series and I had some questions some questions for JJ. Read below to find out what she had to say.

Screen Shot 2021-06-21 at 4.00.00 PM.png

Jennifer Franz Griffith: Do you plan your whole series before the first book or do you write where the stories take you?

JJ Grice: I am a pantser when it comes to writing. So I don't necessarily plot or plan out completely. However, I usually do have somewhat of an idea of where the whole series will go. I usually just let my characters talk to me and lead the way through the series.

JFG: Are your books cliffhangers or stand-alone?

JJ: They can be read as Stand-alone's. However, in order to get the full experience of the stories, I highly recommend reading in order to get the complete backstory for each character.

Screen Shot 2021-06-21 at 4.00.23 PM.png

JFG: What is your favorite trope? Do you mix them up within your series?

JJ: I honestly don't have a favorite trope. I just love a good story. I like the characters to have depth and history that truly defines who they are. So I do my best to keep my characters from being one-dimensional. I don't want my readers to think they have them figured out so easily.

JFG: In your opinion, what makes a series successful?

JJ: It's all about the characters and their relationships with each other. In the romance genre, of course the relationship between the Hero and heroine is important, but in order to keep the story going for multiple books (whether it's focused on the same couple or different couples), there has to be more to focus on than just the main character. That's why with The Maine Stay series, I focused it around a group of lifelong friends. They clash, support each other and help each other through life's challenges.

JFG: How long do you typically wait in between books to publish the next in the series?

JJ: It depends. I try to put at least a month between each book in order to give each book the proper attention it deserves. However, as a reader I hate waiting for books to be released when I'm looking forward to them, so I try not to do that to my readers.

JFG: Anything else you would like to share?

JJ: I've dreamed of being a writer for as long as I can remember. I always dreamed that I would create these beautiful worlds that would pull people in and create these characters that were lovable and relatable at the same time. I feel incredibly blessed that I get to live out that dream now.

Find JJ Grice here:

www.jjgriceromance.com

Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/author/jjgrice

FB Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJJGrice

FB Readers Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/223706055737769

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jjgrice_author/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jjgriceauthor?lang=en

Name: Nicole Dixon

Author

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publishing Type: Self

Publisher: Kindle Direct Publishing

Latest Book: Carlton Harbor Series: Mirror Image, Surprise Reflections, For Always

Upcoming Book: Starting Over

As a writer in the romance genre, I know the importance of a great love scene in a novel. A reader wants to feel the chemistry between your main characters. They want to feel the tension build and they want a Happily Ever After (HEA) or at least a Happy For Now (HFN) ending.

Romance novels differ in the details of a love scene. There are clean romances where there aren’t explicit sex scenes. There are closed door romances where the sex scene takes place off-page, but is implied. Then there are steamy romances which go into greater detail when describing a sex scene.

I interviewed romance author Nicole Dixon about writing a steamy love scene. Read it below.

Jennifer Franz Griffith: What makes a great love scene in a book?

Nicole: I like to believe that it has less to do with the words that you say and more to do with the emotions that you evoke from the reader. I want you to feel what I feel when I write the scene. I want you to be able to see it, like a movie but better because you’re actually there. If I’ve written the scene the way I intended to write it then you’re right there with me.

The butterflies are churning in the pit of your stomach in anticipation of what’s about to happen. You’re locked in, turning the pages but you don’t even realize you’re reading because you’re so tied up with the words that you’re breathing them.

JFG: How long do you make your readers wait before your couples get together?

Nicole: I develop a love story. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good steamy scene, but I am about relationships. Lust is easy, sex is easy, but love – love takes time. I set the foundation for you, and yeah, maybe I tease you a little along the way, but it takes me to about fifty percent in to get you all the way there.

JFG: What is your favorite trope? Why?

Nicole: Soul Mates, hands down. I’ve written different romance tropes but soul mates is by far my favorite. I think a lot of that comes from my personal experiences in life. I met my husband in high school, he was the handsome jock baseball star athlete, and I was the nerdy, Valedictorian.

We were best friends. He was actually the first writer in our duo. He would write me poetry and slip it to me in notes. It’s funny, he still writes me poetry even today, over fifteen years later. I find love letters in his car, the laundry, on his desk, everywhere. Little pieces of his heart he leaves for me, it’s adorable.

One of my favorite quotes is from Flora and Ulysses, “She wrote about love because she had love.”

I write about love because I feel love every single day, my husband is still my very best friend. Doesn’t hurt that he’s amazing in bed and has made it his life’s mission to keep me rolling in new material for my books. He likes to take credit for a lot of my steam, and honestly, he’s got rights – the man knows what he’s doing.

JFG: How do you make sure the couples in each of your novels are unique?

Nicole: This isn’t something that I have to think about, it just kind of happens. I don’t plot out my novels, my characters are alive to me. In my mind my couples are just as real as you or me, and maybe that makes me a little bit crazy, but all the best people are – right?

Each couple that I write grows and develops every time I sit down at my laptop to type. They like to speak to me when I’m driving down the road, or on the treadmill. They have different personalities and form their own relationships. Half the time I’m surprised with a twist or turn my book takes. I fall in love with each and every one of my couples just like you do.

JFG: Do you ever feel nervous when you think about other people (especially people you

know) reading your steamy love scenes?

Nicole: Like most writers, I’ve been writing much longer than I’ve actually been published. Initially, I was nervous about publishing my work, and if a writer tells you that they weren’t they are lying. Putting yourself out there to be judged by others, no matter what you’re doing takes bravery. Throw in explicit scenes and men with filthy mouths and you can multiply that times ten.

I made the decision to publish my work when I decided that it meant more to me that I showed my children to never give up on their dreams than what people might think about me or the things that I write. At this point in my career, I’m confident in my work, and when my children grow up and recover from the shock of finding out their mother writes romance and not “scary” books, I think they will be proud of me. I followed my dreams, and no matter what challenges I face I refuse to give up.

JFG: Anything else you would like to share?

Nicole: Follow your dreams. Be weird. Do your thing. No matter what that is. The only thing holding you back is YOU. Feel free to include your website, social media, links to buy your books, etc.