Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

Hello, there! This is Marla Elkhorn, and I'm here today to interview Leo and Gerald, two characters in the upcoming sci-fi romance novel, The Cat Star Chronicles: Warrior, by Cheryl Brooks. Marla: Nice of you both to come such a long way on such short notice! So, Leo, you're the one the title refers to, right? Leo: Yes, I believe so. Gerald: No, he isn't! It's me! I'm the great warrior! Marla: Um, Gerald, not meaning to offend you in any way, but, aren't you a squirrel? Gerald: Too right! And let me tell you, when there are battles to be fought and won, you need a squirrel on your side! Marla: Uh . . . huh . I see . . . Well, Leo, you're a—a what? Leo: Zetithian. Marla: Well, I guess that explains the cat eyes, fangs, and the pointed ears— love the long hair, by the way! You were once a slave to Tisana's former lover, Rafe, is that right? Leo: Yes, but very briefly. Marla: So, you were a slave, but you became a warrior? Would you tell us about that?...

Someone asked me the other day how long it takes to write a book, and I realized that I had absolutely no idea! What I did tell him was that, while I write pretty fast, a book is never written just once, but about ten or fifteen times! I just finished going through what I sincerely hope is the last version of Warrior and emailed the changes to Sourcebooks. It's a good thing I write what I enjoy reading, or by this time, I'd be sending my novels into cyberspace rather than publishing them. Our editor seemed to think it was better than Slave when I first sent it to her, but it's gone through so many changes since then, I'm not sure anymore. However, what I can tell you is that even after having read through it a million times, it didn't get boring. There are still parts that make me smile, some that make my heart beat a little faster, and others that give me goose bumps, so from my perspective, it's still a good story. Of course, what really matters is what th...

By Cheryl Brooks In my upcoming novel, Warrior , I write about a witch. Tisana is not the Halloween variety, but is a witch in the original sense of the word in that she is the local wise woman, skilled in herbal medicine and healing. She is in tune with nature, but can also summon fire and communicate with animals—powers which come from her alien ancestry. She's an Earth Mother, waiting for the “One” to come to father her child, and she finds him in the form of Leo, a Zetithian slave who is brought to her for healing. I had a strong affinity for the character of Tisana because most of what I do is nurture—my family, my animals, my garden, and my patients. These things I, and other women, do without any magical powers, and while it's great fun to write about a powerful woman, let's face it, we haven't got much power in this world. We may think we've come a long way, baby, but in all honesty, we haven't even begun the fight. Witches—who were all women, of course!...