24 Apr 2016

Interview with author Mia Frances

Hi Mia! Can you tell us a little about your latest book? 

The name of the book is IN HIS KEEPING: CLAIMED. It was published on February 14th, Valentine's Day. It's the 3rd book in the IN HIS KEEPING series. It's an erotic romance murder mystery thriller with a sexy strict alpha male, a feisty heroine, and a very nasty homicidal maniac serial killer. IN HIS KEEPING: CLAIMED - Amazon US   Amazon UK



What inspired you to write it?
My daughter Carrie. She'd read the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy and complained that it wasn't all that well written. She told me that I could do better and should start writing erotic romances.

How did you come up with the idea for the cover?
I didn't. I did a mockup of the elements I wanted on the cover: blindfolded brown-haired girl, a bloody knife, and a hairbrush or paddle and then went shopping. I approached several places but they were vague about whether they could do what I wanted. I got frustrated and went back to the company that I'd used for an earlier SF book. When I couldn't find 3 covers that looked enough alike to use for the series, I read a number of articles by authors recommending various ebook cover designers and one name kept coming up…Melody Simmons. I went to her website and the minute I saw the covers I was blown away and bought the 3 cover set. They are really sexy which is not at all what I thought I wanted. But they are perfect for the books.

If it was made into a movie, who would you like to play the main characters?
I write surrounded by pictures of people I use for my characters' physical features. I used the dark-haired male model that does the Ralph Lauren ads as my Connor, but for the movie I'll take Henry Cavill…in a heartbeat! Johnny Lee Miller was my Drake and a young Katie Holmes was my Sylvie, but Kristen Stewart, Jennifer Lawrence or Georgie Henley could play Sylvie in the movie.

Is it part of a series or is it a stand-alone novel?
It is the 3rd book in a series. I actually thought I would end the story with this book, but now I've got a great idea for a 4th book so I may continue it.

Where is the novel set and why did you choose to set it there?
This novel is set in the Catskill and Adirondack Mts. of upstate New York. My husband and I have spent a lot of time in both places over the years, hiking, camping, and fishing. Part of the book is also set on Ambergris Cay in Belize where we vacationed several years ago. I loved it there.

What is it about this genre that appeals to you so much?
I enjoy reading both erotic romances and murder mysteries. Romances because I love a happily ever after ending and murder mysteries because I love the challenge of a whodunit.

What made you want to become an author?
The freedom of it. I have the best job in the world. Where else can you get paid to daydream all day? Where else can you show up to work in your underwear and no one complains?

How do you come up with character names?
I met a woman whose name was Sylvie and it just clicked. The name sounded spunky and sassy just like the character I envisioned. I actually came up with my alpha male hero's last name first. He and his billion dollar publishing empire are named after the Hudson River which is about 5 miles from my house. Then I went through the alphabet saying male names until I got to the Cs and came up with Connor.

Do you struggle to come up with book titles? Do they come before, during or after you've written your book?
The title of the series changed when I was nearly finished with the 1st book. I was calling it The Learning Curve, but the title didn't tell you anything about the story. I came up with IN HIS KEEPING shortly before I bought the book covers and decided to keep IN HIS KEEPING in every title and just add a subtitle that explained what was going on in the book: TAKEN, BANISHED, and CLAIMED.

Name one of your all-time favourite books?
I can't name just one. I love all the Brother Cadfael books by Ellis Peters, Small Sacrifices by Ann Rule which I've read 5 or 6 times, The Blackstone Affair books by Raine Miller, The Kathy and Brock mysteries written by Barry Maitland and all the V. I. Warshawski thrillers by Sara Paretsky.

Who, or what, inspires you?

Places inspire me. Believe it or not, the idea for IN HIS KEEPING came from a ride my husband and I took through the Adirondacks where we happened upon the Westport, NY railroad station on the banks of Lake Champlain. That's where the story begins and the train station is an important part of the first book. Photos of it are on my Mia Frances Facebook page and in the series book trailer. We once took a shortcut down a 20 mile long dirt logging road in the Adirondacks through a really dense, dark forest. By the time we came out the other end I had outlined my horror/occult novel Worship the Night. The first book I ever wrote The Colony was based on a recurring nightmare.

Where is your favourite place to write?


At my desk in our family room. It's next to some French doors that lead out to our deck and the creek beyond. When I get bored with writing I stare out the glass and watch the birds, squirrels, and ducks.

What is your favourite movie that was based on a book?
That's a toss-up between The DaVinci Code and Gone Girl.

Name two of your favourite authors.
Raine Miller and Ellis Peters.

Tell us a random fact about yourself.
I used to be a newspaper reporter.

Who would play you in the movie about your life?
Natalie Portman

Tell us an interesting fact about where you live.
I live on the Normanskill Creek in upstate New York. It's 60 feet wide and 12 feet deep behind the house. We have beaver, muskrat, all kinds of birds, ducks, and geese, a Great Blue Heron, an occasional river otter, and we even had a bald eagle fly by one day.

What are your (writing) plans for the future?
I am currently working on a dark fantasy which will come out sometime in May. After that it's back to work on more erotic romance murder mysteries.

Tell us one thing that's on your bucket list.
I'd like to spend some time in the English Lake District.

Favourite myth / fairytale?
King Midas.

Who/What did you want to be when you were a kid?
I wanted to be an actress and a writer.

To find out more infirmation about Mia Frances, visit her website or facebook page
Find the series on:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
iBooks
B&N
Kobo Books

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