FROM CHERYL HOLT

answer to comment # 2 (andreina65)

2. a. You said that the fact of being able to write this way for you is something inborn ...don't you want to think twice ? are you really sure you want to change?

**I plan to continue writing historical romances, I’m just not going to write “erotic” historical romances. The main difference in the two sorts of books is that in an “erotic”, the sexual intensity of the story drives all of the characters motivations and behavior. I have written 15 of those, at a very fast pace, and I didn’t feel like I could do another one. I was ready for a change, so I’m going back to the basics of romance. I was offered the chance to tell stories that are more emotional and dramatic, rather than sexual, so I’m going to try that. I think it will give a fresh twist to my stories that fans will really love. There will still be plenty of sex in them, but the sex will not be the driving force of the story.

2. b. Are you thinking to try also the paranormal genre, which is having a great success and many poeple love, including myself ?

**No, I’ve never considered doing any paranormal books. And here in the USA , the fascination for paranormals is beginning to wane as editors are beginning to look for other kinds of stories, and writers are looking to move on to other plot twists.

2. c. And finally, I'm curious to know if your husband ususally reads your books and what does he tell you after reading the hot scenes... I know I know, I'm too curious for my own good!

**No, my husband doesn’t read my books.

answer to comment # 3 (naan)

3. a. You’ve written [your thriller] in first person, why this choice?

**By using first person tone of voice, I thought it added to the terror. I didn’t want the reader to know what the male protagonist was thinking or feeling. As the story unfolds, the man/villain is very sly and very cruel, but he always convinces the heroine that she’s imagining the things that are happening to her. By the end, she starts to wonder if she isn’t going crazy. With the story told only from her point of view, it keeps her guessing and it keeps the reader guessing, too.

3. b. Should it have a lot of success, would you change your mind and write onother one? ;-)

When I first wrote SLEEPING WITH THE DEVIL, I had intended to write thrillers as a second career track. But I work very hard (60-70 hours per week) and it takes an enormous amount of creative energy to write as many books as I do, and to turn them out at a very fast pace. I try to surround myself with positive influences, and when I finished writing such a dark story, it seemed as if I’d brought too much negative energy into my life, and I didn’t like it. So I’d decided not to do another one. But I never say “never.” If the book sells well, I may write more of them in the future.

answer to comment # 5 (MarchRose)

5. a. How are readers reacting to your decision to move to "classic" romance, Cheryl ?

** It’s still quite a few months off in the distance, so I haven’t really heard much from my fans. But I’ve been hearing from historical romance fans for the past two years that they are sick of erotics and vampires. It’s extremely difficult to find a great historical love story that doesn’t have some weird plot device. Readers have to search through the shelves to find a beautiful and heart-warming love story, and I think the time is right to give them the love stories they’ve always enjoyed.

5. b. And if there's no way back from your decision to stop writing erotic romance, is there any new author you might indicate as your possible future "heir"?

**There aren’t really any erotic romance writers who write books similar to mine, so I don’t know who I would recommend. However, nearly all of the historical romances published are either vampire or erotic stories, so just about any book you pick up will have a sexy story line for you to enjoy.