Cindy Spencer Pape Tells All
June 18, 2007 | Interviews
ST: Hi, Cindy Spencer Pape, welcome and thank you for visiting with us this week.
CSP: Glad to be here! (looking around) At least I think I’m here. I could be somewhere else entirely.
ST: Tell us a about yourself.
CSP: Hmmm. Not nearly as interesting as the books.
OK—according to the IRS, I’m an unemployed zoologist. Hopefully next year that will change to well-paid author. There’s always hope. I live in Michigan, about an hour out of Detroit with my husband of 20 plus years, two teenage sons, a neurotic dog (or small horse, depending on your definition) and a stray iguana who followed me home. And some goldfish. I think. Haven’t checked the tank yet today.
ST: You had an exciting new release in May,
and in June, DRAGON IN THE SYSTEM, hits the market.
Please tell us about them.
GSP: Actually CRAZY FOR THE COWBOY came out as an e-book in March and in print on May 11. It’s Book #2 in the Love at the Crazy H series, which is a Yellow Rose contemporary western romance from The Wild Rose Press. It’s the story of the second Hall brother, Sheriff Fitz Hall, and Rhiannon Jakobowski, a new-age vegetarian from Detroit who inherits the bookstore under Fitz’s apartment. She arrives while Fitz is spending a couple of days on the family ranch, and assumes all the stuff in the apartment belongs to her dead great-uncle. So she boxes it up, gives some away, pitches some in the dumpster, and collapses into an exhausted heap. Fitz stumbles into the apartment after a late night car accident call, tired and sick, and doesn’t even notice there’s already somebody in his bed. The fun continues from there.
Dragon in the System is a paranormal romance from Cerridwen Press. I call this one my geek-fest book. Eric is a computer science professor. When he’s assigned to unmask a hacker who is embezzling from campus accounts, he winds up searching in the steam tunnels below campus. He’s not sure if he’s going crazy when he thinks he sees a giant lizard tail, so he enlists the support of herpetology professor Lori Tremain, who turns out to be both a big help and a major distraction. Given the title and that the story is a paranormal, wanna guess what they find in the steam tunnels?
ST: You also have THE COWBOY’S CHRISTMAS BRIDE available. Tell us a little about it.
CSP: The title is pretty self-explanatory, isn’t it? Just kidding. Allison finds out the day of her wedding that her fiancé is gay, so she takes off, and winds up driving through a freak Wyoming snowstorm. She takes shelter at the Crazy H ranch, and offers to help take care of the rancher’s baby nephew in exchange for her keep till the storm ends. CJ Hall is fascinated by his unexpected guest, but he has secrets of his own that keep him from making a serious move. And then his whole big crazy family shows up for Christmas, and decides that Allie would be the perfect match for the youngest brother, Trip. There also may or may not be family ghosts mixing things up. It’s a fun story, or at least that’s what the reviewers said!
ST: What is the heat level of each book?
GSP: Pretty tame by e-book standards, but spicy enough to horrify my dad’s 80-year old cousin. The cowboy books are about the level of a Silhouette Desire or a Harlequin Temptation. DRAGON is a bit hotter. My October Quickie from Ellora’s Cave is—well—scorching!
ST: How did you come up with all the story lines?
CSP: I’m pretty sure that answering that question would take several years and the services of qualified professionals. In all honesty, I have no idea. They just sort of evolve and grow in my brain like parasites. I started the cowboy series because my mother liked cowboys and didn’t care for all my paranormal stuff. The fictional Wyoming town of Shirley is named after her.
ST: And where and can we buy CRAZY FOR THE COWBOY, DRAGON IN THE SYSTEM, and THE COWBOY’S CHRISTMAS BRIDE?
CSP: You can check them all out at my website
The Cowboy books are available in print at Amazon, and electronically at Wild Rose Press. And on June 21, DRAGON IN THE SYSTEM will be at Cerridwen Press.
ST: Thanks for all your time today. Are you available tomorrow for more questions?
CSP: I think I can pencil it in.
ST: Please feel free to ask any questions you have. Cindy will be happy to answer. See you all tomorrow. Until then…
Happy Writing!
Sloane
Thank you, Sloane. I enjoyed your interview with Cindy very much.
I love her cowboys and am looking forward to the computer scientist discovering a dragon. That speaks volumes to my imagination!! Way cool!
On June 18th, 2007 at 9:07 amWhew! I get to be the first commenter on my first visit!
Love your titles and covers, Sloane! I think its just great that you’re promoting the rose garden. I know Cindy has been hearing terrific things about her WRP titles and they’ve been spotted on bookstore shelves. Very exciting!
A question for Cindy: Are you glad you’ve branched out to other ebook publishers and do you think it has grown your readership?
On June 18th, 2007 at 9:08 amDonna and Lainey,
Thank you both for stopping by. Your comments are GREATLY appreciated. Come back anytime. You’re both always welcome.
On June 18th, 2007 at 9:10 amGreat interview Cindy! Dragon in the System sounds awesome. I can’t wait to read it. 🙂
On June 18th, 2007 at 9:22 amHi Cindy. I just have to say I love your books. You do cowboys so well, and you know they’re my weakness. I’m standing in the virtual line for Dragon. It sound so great.
On June 18th, 2007 at 2:11 pmCindy, great interview. Sloane, thank you for having authors like Cindy on your blog.
On June 18th, 2007 at 4:09 pmYou’re very welcome, Charlene. I’m proud to share time with talented people. Thank you for stopping by and please come back again.
On June 18th, 2007 at 4:40 pmGreat interview, Cindy!
On June 18th, 2007 at 6:52 pmLainey,
On June 19th, 2007 at 6:54 amOkay let’s try this again…
Lainey, the cowboy books nad my paranormal stuff are different enough that they each deserve their own home. The Wild Rose Press has been the perfect home for the cowboys while my dragons and pixies and witches are perfectly happy at Cerridwen/Ellora’s Cave. I think it helps me keep the styles separated knowing I have two different editors with differernt sets of expectations.
On June 19th, 2007 at 7:00 amThank you so much to everyone who read and commented! I hope you check back through the week for the other installments. And Sloane, I can’t thank you enough for having me here!
On June 19th, 2007 at 7:01 amYou’re very welcome, Cindy. I love to have talented people to spend time with.
On June 19th, 2007 at 9:27 am