Jillian Chantal

Today I have a special guest, Cassandra Carr. She’s a wicked cool chick and has a new story out with Loose Id. It’s a male/male story and I took this chance to ask her some questions:

Jillian: You write for several publishers. How do you decide which story should be sent where?

Cassandra: Well, I sold my first story to Loose Id. Then a friend of mine told me about Siren and their legion of menage romance readers, so I did a menage book and sold it to them. Loose Id put out a special submissions call for holiday stories and I decided to see if I could write a BDSM book. A special call seemed like a good time to try. With Ellora’s Cave, I met some of the editors over there and liked them, so I subbed my bull rider book to them. Sybarite Seductions is run by a friend of mine and she gives me more creative license than my other publishers, so I work with her on stuff that might not be of interest to my other publishers.

Wow, a long answer to that question…and the answer makes it seem so cut and dried. It’s not. You have to know what different publishers like, what they’re looking for.

Jillian: That’s very true about what different publishers like, for sure. What made you decide to try your hand at a story with two male protagonists?

Cassandra: Much like the BDSM, I wanted to see if I could write a good male/male story. I get bored easily. Sad, but true. I’ve been reading some great male/male stuff in the past year or so and wanted to join the party. 😉

Jillian: Your characters are both involved with hockey and I see you on FB and twitter talking about hockey. Who’s your favorite team and why?

Cassandra: The Buffalo Sabres. Because I live in Buffalo. 😛 But I think I’d like them even if I didn’t live in Buffalo. They play an up-tempo game and have some really exciting players. Now before you all scoff and say I’d hate them if I didn’t live in Buffalo, consider that my next favorite team is the Pittsburgh Penguins, who play an up-tempo game and have some really exciting players.

Jillian: Have you ever played hockey yourself?

Cassandra: No, I’d love to, but I dislocated my kneecap (I’ll pause while you all cringe, as well you should – it hurt a lot) so I’m not allowed to do anything with stops and starts or any impact exercises like skiing and running. I’m really heartbroken about that. Okay, not so much since besides my stationary bike I’m not a big fan of exercise.

Jillian: Describe your dream helmet if you were the goalie of a romance writers hockey team and could design your own.

Cassandra: Oh wow. I like the masks that aren’t boring, but also aren’t so busy you can’t tell what the heck is on them. Masks that represent the team or the town in some way are cool too.

Jillian: How do you take your coffee?

Cassandra: I don’t. I’ve never been a coffee drinker. Only drink tea very occasionally. If I have a hot beverage, which isn’t often, it’s usually cocoa.

Jillian: Tell us about your story and the inspiration that led to these characters.

Cassandra: See the Light is about a 22yo hockey player named Jason who’s made the US Olympic team, and a 37yo advisor to that team, Patrick. Both Jason and Patrick are gay but deeply closeted, since no one in the NHL is openly out as gay. They recognize each other’s secret, though, and begin a clandestine relationship. Now not only do they need to worry about being outed, but there’s the added problem of Patrick being a much older man and one who is treated almost like a coach.

I’m not sure what led to the inspiration. I modeled Patrick after a couple of older guys who are NHL coaches, GMs etc. He’s kind of a conglomeration of personality traits of those guys. I made Jason a deeply fearful man who’s just coming into his own in the hockey world. I thought that would be an interesting take, with Jason not really being an established player.

Jillian: Thanks for being here today, Cassandra. It was fun learning a little about your process in writing this story.