Today's Hot Seat features Author Roxy Wilson. Roxy's latest book, He's So Into You released in May this year and is part of her Healing Hearts Series with Secret Cravings Publishing.
Let's see how Roxy goes today with the tricky questions in the Hot Seat.
About your writing
How did you
get started as a writer?
When
I was in sixth grade a classmate and I collaborated and wrote a mystery,
similar to Famous Five and Secret Seven. He did the illustrations since he drew so
well, and I wrote the story. I also
wrote lots of inspirational poems in my teens and twenties.
Why do you write?
Because I have stories to tell and I don’t mind if
people are willing to read them.
Have you ever had a
day you wanted to quit and never write again?
No, I haven’t.
But I must admit there are days when I have writer’s block. I don’t get too worried about it though
because it’s just for a season and it will eventually pass.
Do you feel lucky to be doing what you are doing?
Yes, I do.
I have no regrets about choosing this path.
Tell me how
you got to where you are today?
Well,
I already told you about how my schoolmate and I collaborated to write a mystery
and my forays into writing poetry. I’m
an English/literature teacher, and one component of the Caribbean region’s
English B (literature) examination is poetry.
I don’t like to say this, but over the years I noticed most of my
students found it difficult to understand, appreciate and respond critically to
poetry. For those reasons, I decided to
assist them by writing a poetry study guide and five years ago, it was
published by Macmillan Education under my legal name. The second edition was released in 2011. It was only last July, however, I decided to
write romance stories. How did that
happen? One of my Facebook friends
posted an article. I read it, I was
inspired by it, and I decided to write an interracial romance story. Within two months I was finished and the rest
is history. It’s in the R&R stage right now. He’s So
Into You is my second story.
How do your
family/spouse react to your work as an author? Do they know what you write?
My
husband, parents, siblings and BFF know what I write. My husband is my number one fan. My kids don’t know what I write, but they’re
aware I write stories they’re too young to understand. In their own way they support me,
though. For instance, when they get home
from school they ask me how many words I got to write that day, or if they
could help me choose the name of my characters.
They’re such darlings.
About you:
What are you
passionate about in life?
My family. Maintaining
strong familial bonds is important to me.
I’m also passionate about improving the lives of less fortunate people
who happen to be within my sphere of influence.
If you had to give a thank-you speech at the Oscars, who would you thank and
what would you say?
My husband would be the first person I’d thank. He has seen me through my insecurities, my
medical crises, my failures. He’s
supported me through my pursuit of my undergraduate and graduate degrees. He’s
a wonderfully supportive husband and father.
I’d thank my kids, as well, because they've brightened up my life
and helped to shape me into the type of mother I am. And of course, I’d thank my parents.
They were the ones who showed me how beautiful life could be when touched by
love because they’re living examples of what a loving couple should look like. They also ensured I had everything I needed
when I was growing up.
What are the three most important life lessons you've learned that might
make life easier for others?
First, do whatever I can to help the less
fortunate or the differently able people around me. Second, nothing is wrong with giving someone
a second chance. Third, preserving the environment and making other positive
changes in the world start with me.
If you could trade places
with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or
fictional. Whom would it be and why?
Dr. Oz. He
seems to have unlocked the secrets of living a longer, fuller, healthier life.
What's the worst thing you
did as a kid?
I did so many naughty things as a kid, it’s difficult for
me to decide which one is worst.
What do you do to have fun?
I read a lot and I love reviewing the books
I enjoyed reading. I've recently become a reviewer at Romance Novels In Color
(RNIC) and Smile Somebody Loves You blog (SSLY). I also like cooking, particularly West Indian
cuisine. And I enjoy listening to all
kinds of music, ranging from gospel, to R&B, reggae, calypso, soca, parang,
pop and rock.
Share a funny incident in your
life.
Hmmmmm…
My date (who became my husband) and I were walking along the streets of
the capital city of my native country.
One minute we were talking and laughing and the next I was on my butt.
Now you know, Jan, when you've just started dating you want to make a good
impression. Falling down in the middle
of the capital city is definitely not one of the ways to do that. I was
extremely embarrassed; I didn't even give him a chance to help me up. I got up as quickly as I could, without
falling flat on my face this time, and dashed across the street. I didn't even look back when he called out
my name. He found me about four hours
later, because at that time there were no cellphones to contact each
other. Heck, years later I was still a bit
embarrassed. But you know what? He was concerned about me. It’s one of the reasons why I’m so in love
with him more than twenty years later.
And when we tell our three kids about it, they laugh like crazy. So, yeah, I guess the incident was funny.
Fun Stuff
If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would you like to see
play the lead role as you?
Samuel L. Jackson dressed up in drag. LOL
If you were a type of food, what type of food would you be?
West Indian, preferably curried.
What is your favorite color- food- song- movie?
Any shade of green --- any savory West Indian dish
--- Lovely Day by Bill Withers --- Face/Off
What's the funniest pick up
line ever used on you?
I can’t even remember.
What's the one thing you can't
live without?
My laptop.
And finally:
You
are driving along in your car on a wild, stormy night, it's raining heavily,
when suddenly you pass by a bus stop, and you see three people waiting for a
bus:
-An old lady who
looks as if she is about to die.
-An old friend who
once saved your life.
-The perfect
partner you have been dreaming about.
You can only fit one person in your car, who would you choose to offer a ride
to?
None of them. In that way, they
can’t say I chose one over the other.
LOL.
Blurb: He's So into You
Being badly injured in a plane crash and feeling
responsible for losing his fiancé keep Jordan Cooper from getting involved with
another woman, but his best friend Caleb talks him into going on a blind date.
He’s surprised that in a short time his feelings for Raina Abbott runs deep.
Jordan wants more than just one night with her, but he has to convince her
first.
Leaving an abusive ex and ending an unhealthy relationship
with food still aren’t enough to help Raina Abbott overcome her feelings of
insecurity, but her best friend Jayce convinces her that going on a blind date
is the first step to boosting her self-confidence and feeling good about
herself again. Jordan Cooper shows her that she’s beautiful, both inside and
out, but can a date and one night of passion assure her that he’s really into
her?
Excerpt - He's so into You by Roxy Wilson
“May I ask you a question, Raina?
“Sure.”
“I just wondered why you’re here with me.”
“Because you invited me to your room, remember?”
It was obvious she evaded his question. It was the first
time Jordan noticed Raina wasn’t altogether comfortable. So why in the world is
she here?
“You know what I mean. Why are you on this date?
“Why shouldn’t I?”
“You’re beautiful, charming and intelligent. I would think
you’d have men lining up just to be with you.”
Raina laughed without humor. “The trouble is, the guys I
know either don’t want to be romantically involved with a full figured woman or
just pretend they do.”
“You’re telling me you’ve never been seriously involved
with anyone? Never been in love?”
“What’s love anyway?” she asked mockingly, and then
shrugged her shoulders. “Maybe it’s just the irresistible desire to be
irresistibly desired.”
“You think quoting Robert Frost is a satisfactory answer?”
Jordan shook his head. “Be honest with me.”
Raina stopped swaying to the music and looked at him
seriously. “Okay, you want to hear the truth? The truth is, I met a man who
threw kindness my way, flowers, late night phone calls, the works. Within three
months I moved in with him, much to the angst of my family. It didn’t dawn on
me that he never took me anywhere, never invited his family or friends to our
apartment, until I had invested so much time and effort in the relationship, I
felt I shouldn’t leave him. He treated me like crap, insulted me, nothing I
said or did met his approval. I became a chicken-shit, afraid of him, afraid of
my freaking shadow, for god’s sake. I felt like such an idiot, because I didn’t
even realize what I had become. Everyone noticed but me.”
To purchase He's so Into You please click on the following buy links: Amazon ARe Secret Cravings Publishing Bookstrand
About the Author
Roxy Wilson is a
self-professed junkie whose excessive consumption of traditional
and electronic books is legendary.
As a graduate with a
degree in Education, she writes blogs which help readers to think critically
about and appreciate poetry. In July, 2012, however, she decided to delve into
the world of writing romance stories.
When she is not reading
or writing, she spends her time cooking, listening to music and visiting the
various islands of the Caribbean.
You can follow Roxy on the following social media sites:
No comments:
Post a Comment