Connie and Tina: Hi, Toni! Thanks for being here with us, and answering all sorts of questions. We’re looking forward to learning about your writing and more, but first, tell us a bit about yourself, what you’re working on now and what’s going to be on the shelves soon.

Toni: Thank you both for inviting me!

Let’s see – about me … I’ve been writing most of my life, and I’m thrilled to have what I consider the best job in the world – at least the best job for me. I’ve been happily married for sixteen years, no kids, I grew up in the country and now live in the suburbs, and I’ve been watching "All My Children" since the age of eight. How’s that for a hodge podge of info?

Right now, I’m in between books, but working on developing a couple of ideas. I do a lot of just "thinking" before I write, so I’m in the thinking stage now.

As for what’s coming up on the shelves, In Your Wildest Dreams was just released, which I’m super excited about, and next month Taking Care Of Business (an anthology with LuAnn McLane and Patricia Ryan) will be out!

Connie: We like hodge podge and AMC, too! And we'll try not to keep you too long so you can get back to your thinking about the next book!

Tina: Let me start us off by asking who is it in your life that inspires or motivates you to continue writing? How do they keep you going? Was this person(s) also the first one to read the manuscript of your first published novel?

Toni: You know, I don’t think it’s a person or people who motivate me. For me, writing and the desire to write comes from within. I would be doing it no matter how my life had turned out, whether or not I was able to sell books, etc. so long as I had a life that allowed me the necessary time – and I’ve always found that people who are driven to write, no matter how busy they are, find ways to make the time.

The thing that has always motivated me to write, I believe, is simply wanting to connect with other people through the stories in my head. I grew up in a rural area, as an only child, so I think all this is basically the result of a lot of time spent alone. ; )

Connie: Toni, "The Red Room" in New Orleans was where the spark of an idea formed for your new book, In Your Wildest Dreams. What was it about this room that intrigued you so? Was this one of the types of places where you wish the walls could talk?

Toni: You hit the nail on the head with "wishing the walls could talk." For one thing, this room is in a very historic building in one of the most decadent yet mysterious cities around. Indeed, just being in this room made me wonder about the many, many things that might have happened there before I came along. And though it was essentially the décor of the room that caught my attention so much, with that décor came a certain … essence, an aura, of sensuality. It immediately seemed to me like the perfect place for a seduction, and I knew right then and there that a fictional one would take place there.

Connie: Expanding on that thought for a minute, a mural of angels on the ceiling of a bar inspired what was to be a title of a book yet to be written. However, the title didn’t fit the book you ended up writing, but the mural found its way into the story. Is this how your writing and thought process evolves? One thing leads to another, something different develops here from the initial idea, or a totally new concept pops up there...? What if this, what if that?

Toni: Yeah, I think you described this pretty well. The first ideas I form for a story are just that – ideas, concepts, snippets of action or dialogue or emotion, and as you can tell from your above questions, often it’s a place that plants the first seeds.

In the particular case of Brushstrokes, my novella in Taking Care Of Business, the idea about the mural changed simply because time passed, and because between the time I first saw that ceiling and the time I actually sat down to write the story, my entire writing world had changed. I wasn’t even aware of the romance genre when I first saw the ceiling, let alone writing it, so those early concepts had to change to suit what I’m writing now.

But in most cases, such changes really are cases of simply letting the story evolve and grow. No idea arrives fully formed, so it’s a process of sewing pieces together until you have the whole quilt. ; )

Connie: And from a mural to wishing, or imagining, walls could talk, there's so many possiblilties that could evolve into stories, as you've proven.

From Kensington Precious Gems, to Temptations, to Duets – was it a natural progression for you to go to the steamier, sensual single titles, or has it been in the back of your mind from the start?

Toni: Even before I was writing romance, I was writing steamy books. ; ) In fact, the romantic and sexual content of my early works is what spurred by friend and critique partner, Joni Lang, to suggest I try writing romance. If some of my books seem less sexy than others, that’s a result of editing. ; ) But by and large, all of my stories contain a lot of passion and sensuality and I suspect they always will. I think sex is an important part of a relationship – in fact, I think it’s important, period, meaning not to be entered into lightly – so it naturally finds its way into my work as a large element of the story.

Tina: Not to be entered into lightly...thanks for that.

And of all your books, what is the least amount of time you spent writing a book? What do you think there was about the book or characters that made it go by that quick?

Toni: Well, when I was writing category romance, I could write a book in as little as two to three weeks. It wasn’t any particular book – it was a lot of them. I think this is because I just happen to be a prolific writer, and it might mean I had those books already better mapped out in my mind or maybe knew the characters better when I sat down to write.

These days, no three week books, I’m sorry to say. ; ) The single titles, while being about twice as long as the early books, are just way more complex, so I’m spending about six months per book now.

I also think my general writing habits have changed. I used to sit and write, write, write, all day long. These days I take breaks, answer e-mail, etc. I don’t think one way is particularly right or wrong, but just that my methods changed over time. I blame the Internet. ; )

Connie: We've heard that a time or two from various authors! :-)

You say you want to give readers heroines they can relate to and heroes they can fall in love with. How do you attempt to do that? What things or characteristics must each of them have for you to feel you’ve accomplished that?

Toni: With my heroines, I want to let the reader in on everything that’s going on with her – her doubts, her hopes, her fears, her past, her present. I want readers to know her well enough to feel that she’s a friend, and I want readers to want to be her friend. I want her to have emotions that the majority of women can understand because they’ve been there, too.

For the hero, I want to create a guy who’s strong, virile, seductive, and sexy. He’s going to have faults, but that’s okay, because most guys do. ; ) I want to strike just the right chord between power and tenderness.

And overall, I want my characters to feel real – I want readers to feel they’ve come to know them as they read the book, and to feel as if maybe the two are walking down the street together somewhere right now, holding hands and living their happily ever after. ; )

Connie: When you dress your hero or other secondary male character, does their outfit depict your taste in what would attract you to them, or is it completely the personality of the character?

Toni: Well, I base this pretty much on the character. I guess I also tie in a bit of what would personally attract me to that man if he were a real guy. But more than anything, it’s got to suit the guy and make sense – it completes the picture I’m giving the reader, so it has to fit.

Lately, my heroes have been strong alpha guys who don’t really pay much attention to what they wear, so it’s been a lot of jeans and t-shirts. Sounds boring, but I promise, they’re jeans and t-shirts that fit really well.

Tina: Of course!!

What’s on your writing to-do list, Toni? Is there anything in particular you’d like to do yet?

Toni: Oh gosh, a million things. I have a list of ideas in my head a mile long. My main hope is to keep expanding on what I’m writing now – super sexy books that are also super emotional, featuring characters who are dealing with real and serious issues, past and present. Within that concept alone, I’ve got lots of room to explore.

Every now and then, someone will approach me and tell me they have a great idea for a book they want me to write. I smile and tell them they’ll have to write it themselves because if I live to be a hundred, I won’t have enough time to write all of my own stories.

Connie: I love your "Note from Toni" sections on your website. It’s kind of a fun and personal behind the scenes type peek into your writing. Where did the idea come from?

Toni: I’ll be honest – I stole it from my friend Jenny Crusie ; ) It’s fitting, though – she’s been pretty instrumental in my career in lots of ways – her books were the very first romances I read, and they were how I suddenly knew what I should be writing and what I wanted to say to women.

Tina: Have you ever been so discouraged that you’ve considered not writing?

Toni: I’ve been discouraged – lots! ; ) But I never ever thought about not writing. It’s just too big a part of my identity – it’s what I do, it’s who I am, it’s where my head is most of the time. ; )

Connie: And I'm sure your fans are happy to know that, Toni!

To get to know you better we’re going to start with an absolutely, strictly for fun question... You’re stranded on a desert island with what fictional (movie or book) character? What is it about this character that makes you want to get to know him or be willing to be stranded with him?

Toni: George Clooney. Wait, darn it – he’s not fictional, is he? Rats.

This is a toughie. Everyone I keep thinking of is someone real.

Okay, wait, I’ve got one – just off the top of my head. How about Chandler Bing? He’s cute and funny. On a desert island, funny would be important!

Tina: Oh, go ahead and pick George!

There are some memorable actors/actresses from the glamour days of Hollywood. Who is your favorite actor from this time? Favorite actress?

Toni: Okay, half the world will want to smack me for this, but I don’t really have any faves from this era. I have fave movies and fave performances, but I have to admit that I haven’t watched a wide enough array of old movies to really have a favorite actor or actress.

If pressed, though, I’d go with Audrey Hepburn and Clark Gable.

Jumping ahead to now, my favorite actor is definitely Johnny Depp. Although I’m seriously concerned he may have way overplayed Willie Wonka …

Connie: Loved him as Captain Jack...Toni, you’ve got a wide variety of things you like to do such as scrapbooking, cross stitching, and genealogy to name a few. Do you have various projects going at once, do you do one project and finish before starting another, or does it depend on your mood?

Toni: Probably depends. I try to be a "finisher," not let projects languish. But I will admit I’ve got a quilt top folded up in a quilting box that hasn’t seen the light of day in two years. Generally speaking though, I always finish one scrapbook before going to another, and the same with cross stitch projects. I’m in a scrapbooking phase now.

The genealogy is a thing that comes and goes. I’m passionate about it to a fault, but right now I’m too busy with other things to do much with it. But in a year or two, I’ll get the urge to dive back in and I’ll be updating my genealogy website and traipsing through cemeteries with my camera. ; ) Oh, and I just heard from a distant relative who’s going to kindly send me a picture of my great, great, great grandmother, born in 1840 – so I’m pumped about that!

Tina: I would be, too. How neat is that?

Which would you prefer? A maid for the day or a weekend road trip?

Toni: Easy. Weekend road trip. I’m a traveling girl and I’m all about the road trip. The maid – eh, I’d rather clean it myself. Then again, remember, I don’t have kids, so I’m sure that’s a factor. ; )

Tina: Answer any way you want, this question can be serious or fun. It’s your lucky day. You’ve thrown a coin into a wishing well and are granted not one, not two, but three wishes! What would they be?

Toni: I’ll have to go for the serious. I’ve been battling a lingering illness for seven months, so I can’t just toss away perfectly good wishes. ; )

Wish 1: Good health for myself and my friends and family
Wish 2: To quote Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality, "World peace, Bob."
Wish 3: To live a long enough life to do all the things I want to do.

Connie: What is something that never fails to make you laugh or cry?

Toni: My husband never fails to make me laugh. He’s hysterically funny, with a very quirky sense of humor. He can make me laugh when nothing else can.

For crying, it’s The Little Mermaid, when she sings "Part of His World." I can’t explain it – it just gets me. She wants to be part of his world so bad, and she can’t, because she’s different! It’s heart-breaking! Oh, and ending of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." Can explain that one even less – I must have had a bad experience as a child, but when it ends, I cry. Maybe it has something to do with the misfit toys … I know they’re getting homes now, but still, I feel so sad for them.

Tina: Things like that, though not specifically those things, make me cry, too.

If you were told you could only keep 4 novels, or books of any kind, never to have any more, what would they be?

Toni: Wow, tough question. Chronicle of the World – it has 1146 very big pages and is truly a chronicle of all world history.
Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry
Sunrise Song, by Kathleen Eagle
The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven, by Sherman Alexie

But I really dislike the idea of only having four books. Makes me shiver.

Tina: Good thing it's a just pretend question then, huh?

Do you have a comfort food, Toni?

Toni: Weird you should ask that. My aforementioned lingering illness has to do with food – I can’t seem to digest much of anything. And yes, I’ve had lots of tests, even an operation, the works – but it’s just not getting better. So after seven months of not being able to eat any of my favorite foods, I’m now in the process of trying to forget how much I love food. So, for the sake of my mental health, I’ll have to pass on answering this question. ; )

Connie: We'll skip past that and on to...What qualities does your husband have that attracted you to him initially?

Toni: As I mentioned earlier, he’s very funny. He can bring me up when I’m down like no one else. And he’s always there for me to lean on when I need him. He’s a pretty great guy. He hasn’t changed much since we met, so the things that attracted me to him then are the same things that attract me to him now.

Connie and Tina: That’s a good place to stop and say thank you for a wonderful interview. We very much appreciate your time. But before we let you go, is there anything we forgot to ask that you’d like the readers and fans to know?

Toni: Only how much I appreciate readers! I’m so thankful for those who take the time to post nice reviews at Amazon or elsewhere, or those who take the time to e-mail and tell me they loved one of my books. Writing can be a lonely profession, but being reminded that readers appreciate what I do makes it all worthwhile.

Also, I hope your readers will visit my new website at www.ToniBlake.com. I’m just thrilled with it, so I want to share.

Comment or respond to Toni's interview and we'll post your comments below!

"I have not read any of Toni's books but do find it interesting that we share the same name and appear to be about the same age and look a bit alike. Small world."

~Toni Blake