Dear Francesca (comment #47),

I'm so glad you enjoyed CRY FOR PASSION, and that it touched you. I am humbled by such praise. And very happy to hear it! *smile*

As I wrote earlier, I keep trying to write a book that won't be so involved . . . or controversial! . . . but always my characters insist that they have a life of their own, which is not to make my own more convenient.

While I wouldn't describe writing as "difficult," it is emotionally draining. In order to write the way I do, I have to live with my characters. I go to sleep thinking about them, I eat thinking about them; my husband and I both discuss them as if they were real. And they are real to me, which I'm sure sounds very strange. But I feel for my characters, and I want to do them justice in my writing.

However, I suspect your question is in regard to the controversy that my books seem to cause. I won't say that I've gotten used to it, because it always hurts when another doesn't like one's baby. And my books are very much my babies. When THE LADY'S TUTOR was first published here in the States (1999), I was blown away by the anger and yes, the personal hatred, that it excited. It had been a time-consuming book to write (I had to go over and over the dialogue, to make sure it progressed the h/h's relationship with each meeting) and I was anxiously awaiting for it to be published, hoping if nothing else, it would be appreciated for the sheer labor that went into it. What I got was women saying that if this was the future of romance, they were going to get a second mortgage on their homes and buy up used book stores. One woman that I particularly remember wrote that her husband had picked it up at a bookstore for her to read because he knew she liked romances, and my book had been prominently displayed. She proceeded to run down her husband for picking up such a book, and then she turned on me and my book. It wasn't a romance, she said; it was horrible. Gross. How could one live happily ever after if one was the victim of pederesty? Which just made me very, very sad. As if only people who were untouched by life could ever find happiness.

Fortunately, however, I received lots and lots of support from readers. I discovered two things from the publication of TLT: many readers do want the reality of hope rather than the unobtainable fantasy of perfection. I also learned that promotionally, any talk/advertisement is good. So while negative talk still hurts, I know it's better than silence.

On a side note, THE LADY'S TUTOR when published in Spain under the name EL TUTOR, caused just as big of an uproar there as it had in the States. So it has been interesting to learn that CRY FOR PASSION, my latest book, has likewise caused controversy in Italy.

I hope I answered your questions? . . .

Grazie!

Robin Schone