Terrific Tuesday With Liz Crowe:)

I'm both honored and thrilled to have the one and only Beer Wench aka Liz Crowe with me today!  I 'met' Liz through the RB4U loop and she soon had me drooling over her book excerpts.  To date, I've only read two of them, but believe me, I plan to get them all eventually!

Welcome!  Please introduce yourself and tell us about your latest release.

Hi Molly thanks for having me. I’m Liz Crowe. I own a craft microbrewery and write books.   Lust on Tap is one of my “brewery based” sexy romance for real life books that released from Ellora’s Cave August 10. 

It’s a bit of a Cinderella story, but if Cinderella refused to marry the prince…

Have you ever had an idea for a story which scared you after you began writing it?

Um, can’t say that I have. I write “contemporary” and borderline mainstream, not paranormal so my characters and plots are not necessarily frightening. However, I will admit being intimated by some story lines, until I can figure out why they intimidate me and get over it.

Have you incorporated actual events from your own life into your books?

TONS of it actually. Lust on Tap is about beer sales, ostensibly as the heroine Helena is a sales person for a beer distribution company. Hero #1 is a brewery owner and Hero #2 is a famous German brewer.  I also have a successful series about real estate agents—I was one of those.

How much research do you do?  Do you research first and then write, or do you write first, then research as needed?

A little of both. I’m pondering a larger project right now about Detroit during Prohibition, for which I’m doing a fair bit of pre-writing research. And I have already begun a new series about an expansion professional soccer team that is forcing me to research the business of soccer.

Is there any message you want readers to take from reading your work?

I write my books in pretty unique settings—breweries, beer festivals, real estate offices and in the case of another series, Istanbul, Turkey. I like to think that my style, voice and characters are just as unique and to that end I’ve coined (and copyrighted) a phrase: Romance for Real Life. My books are unpredictable in many cases, and the characters act so real at times readers get frustrated with them as you would a friend or family member who does something you consider crazy, or stupid. But I like it that way—and while not all readers connect with me, in the last 3 months alone I have sold a TON of books based on this concept. The books contain smoking hot sexy scenes of course, but as part of the story, and do not always end the way many more traditional romance readers like.

However, my “real life” genre is catching on I think so I would hope that readers keep this in mind when picking up any of my books.  Hmmm...Romance For Real Life....sounds similar to my own writing; maybe that's why I 'get' your stories.  I like the realism to them:)

Are you a plotter or a pantser?  And have you ever had a story take on a life of its own?

Head-writing plotter, for the over arching story, then a total pantser once I solidify the key plot points.

How long did it take for you to be published?

I began my Stewart Realty series four years ago, a little at a time as  I was still selling real estate. It got plenty of rejections and learned a lot about what I was doing wrong with it. I had a brewery side story attached to it that I sold first. The Brewing Passion series has been released from its original publisher and I am thrilled to be able to put it back alongside the realty series where it belongs.

It took about 3 years total to see my name on the cover of an ebook (September 2009), but during those years I was only writing about 15% of my time and didn’t start submitting until probably a year and a half into it.  I'm looking forward to the rest of your Stewart Realty series; I LOVED Floor time!

If you could go back and tell yourself anything when you first began your writing career, what would you say?

For God’s sake don’t write in first person (I don’t and I won’t ever).

Don’t let professional jealousy get the best of you.

Do not sacrifice your voice, or your characters to trends.

Laptop or pen and ink?  What are your ‘must-haves’ when writing?

Laptop.

In the morning: coffee and music

In the evening: craft beer and music

Who are your favorite authors?  Who would you say influenced you the most?

I am a mainstream reader for the most part. My favorites include:

Anne Tyler

Margaret Atwood

Stephen King’s mainstream stuff (not the hard core horror)

John Irving

David Sedaris

Michael Lewis

For erotic stuff my go to authors are:

Joey W. Hill

Shayla Black (non paranormal)

Lauren Dane

Roni Loren (a new one—she’s awesome!)

Laura Kaye (same)

I LOVE John Irving!!

  

What would your readers be surprised to learn about you?

I was a PK (preacher’s kid)?

I have an embarrassingly high tolerance for alcohol?
I’m addicted to Bikram (sweaty) yoga?

I’m a certified “Cicerone” which is like a wine sommelier only for beer?

Now for the fun questions:

Mountains or Beach?

Without hesitation: Beach. With a cabana boy to ply me with…stuff.

Favorite amusement park ride?

 The Bar

Any Summer Festivals you like to attend?

 Um, I already attend so many of them for beer I’d have to say no.

If you’re writing a Christmas-themed story, how do you get ‘in the mood’?

I have only written one Christmas themed story and it revolved around a special beer one of the owners of a brewery made just for the employee holiday party—I sampled a bunch of “holiday brews” to get an idea of what I wanted it to taste like. So I think you can safely say that alcohol is a theme for me….LOL!  I think that would be a safe bet;)

LUST ON TAP! Available now from Ellora’s Cave. http://www.jasminejade.com/p-10265-lust-on-tap.aspx

BLURB:

When wealthy brewery owner Dustin Prufrock meets sexy saleswoman Helena Turner, sparks fly—angry sparks. They seem destined to do nothing but clash, until a hot hook-up in a cold beer cooler changes everything.

For Dustin, it’s a life-changing moment and one that sets him on a path away from his birthright. Helena is forced to face her fears about committing to a man considered the playboy of the micro brewing world. The power of pre-conceived notions nearly tears them apart, until they meet up with Erik, Dustin’s old friend from the brewing institute in Munich, who provides them with an erotic and emotional connection that completes them all.

But fate has different plans, and Dustin is forced to take responsibility for his old life as heir to a large business. While he slips back into his expected role, Helena and Erik are thrown together in an attempt to run Dustin’s brewery without him. But the strength and trust of their once-balanced threesome has been shattered, and mutual lust might not be enough to keep them all together.

For info on my back list visit:  www.lizcrowe.com

Friend me on FB: http://www.facebook.com/lizcroweauthor

Follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/beerwencha2

Join my street team!  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LizCroweStreetTeam/

Join the Romance for Real Life conversation on Facebook!

http://www.facebook.com/groups/RomanceForRealLife/

Bio: Microbrewery owner, best-selling author, beer blogger and journalist, mom of three teenagers, and soccer fan, Liz lives in the great middle west, in a Major College Town.  Years of experience in sales and fund raising, plus an eight-year stint as an ex-pat trailing spouse plus making her way in a world of men (i.e. the beer industry) has prepped her for life as erotic romance author.  When she isn't sweating inventory and sales figures for the brewery, she can be found writing, editing or sweating promotional efforts for her latest publications.

Otherwise, look for her doing pounds of laundry for her athletic children, watching La Liga on the Fox Soccer Channel, or trying to figure out what to order in for dinner. Liz loves her Foo Fighters Pandora station, and watching reruns of Deadwood, when there isn't any decent sports on (like during “golf season”).  Her beer blog a2beerwench.com is nationally recognized for its insider yet outsider views on the craft beer industry. Her books are set in the not-so-common worlds of breweries, on the soccer pitch and in high powered real estate offices.  Don’t ask her for anything “like” a Budweiser or risk painful injury.

Thanks for being with me today Liz!  I'll be picking up your back list in the coming months.