We cornered Lauren Fraser during the holiday season and hope you enjoy the results….

Sex, Sin and Surf is available at Ellora’s Cave

Tell us a little about Sex, Sin and Surf, what inspired you to it?

Last year we went to Mexico on vacation and we spent some time surfing in this fantastic little town called Sayulita. When we were taking a break, my daughter and I were watching this fantastic surfer carving through the waves and we overheard some older women talking about the same surfer but for a completely different reason. LOL and thus the idea for Sex, Sin and Surf was born.

When you start writing, do you already have the story plotted out or do you let the characters dictate what will happen?

I’m a plotter so I typically have the majority of the story plotted out before I ever sit down to write, that’s not to say the characters don’t occasionally take a different route to get to the end result while I’m writing. There have certainly been days when the way a scene unfolds is different than I had originally pictured it.

What inspired you to write in your genre?  Is this the genre you started writing in or have you morphed to this one? I enjoy reading erotic romance. I’m a huge romantic at heart and a sucker for a happy ending. When I started writing, I naturally gravitated to romance and originally I pictured myself writing less steamy books but sex is such a huge part of a healthy, loving relationship so it seemed odd to close the door on that part of what was happening with the couple. I think showing how they interact intimately really allows the reader to feel like they know and care about the characters. Plus it’s kind of hot. LOL

Do you have a favorite character you have written?

I don’t know if I do. When I’m writing and promoting a book those characters are my favorites since I’m thinking about them all the time, they kind of become like friends. I really liked Ben, the hero in Sex, Sin and Surf, since he’s fun and sexy and a bit tortured. But if you asked me again in a few weeks when I’m deeper into my next project I’d probably say one of the characters from that book. LOL

Do you have a character that you look back on now and don’t like?

Oddly enough I don’t. There are characters that I didn’t like as much but that was part of what made their journey necessary, they had to grow and change and by the end of the book I really liked the person they became.

Do you draw inspiration for your characters from real life? Any fun stories you could share? Absolutely, as I mentioned above the idea for Sex, Sin and Surf came from real life. And as embarrassing as it is the waxing scene in Aged to Perfection is somewhat based in real life. I’m sure anyone who has been for a bikini wax knows that you need to leave your inhibitions at the door. LOL

What do you find the hardest part of writing?

Balancing my time. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in the non-writing activities that I often find that I didn’t get nearly as much actual writing done as I would have liked. Oops.

Name one thing that your readers would be surprised to know about you.

I don’t know, they might be surprised to find out that I am a really big MMA (mixed martial arts) fan.

Do you have a guilty pleasure?

I am a HUGE tea drinker and have a cupboard full of different flavors of loose tea but every now and then I like a good cup of coffee, not fancy latte’s or anything but a regular cup of coffee but what makes it a guilty pleasure is that I love having regular coffee with condensed milk in it. I know its huge calories but it tastes soooo good.

What do you need before you start writing?  Anything that is just a must have or the creative juice don’t flow?

I’ve got to have the right music for my mood and I absolutely have to have a cup of tea on my desk.

Does music influence your writing?  If so, do any of your stories have a theme song?

When I wrote Sex, Sin and Surf I was in an All that Remains faze so I listened to a lot of that, it’s sexy and gritty and their song two weeks really fit the mood of the book.

If your story was optioned for a movie, who would play your characters?

Oh goodness that’s a tough one. Umm going on looks alone maybe for Celeste someone like Elizabeth Mitchell or Jennifer Aniston and for Ben I can’t honestly think of an actor in the right age range so maybe if you added 5-10 years onto Taylor Lautner   LOL not sure what it says about me that I can’t think of an actor in that age range. Oy.

Where were you when you got your first contract?  Who did you tell first?

I was at home when I got the offer for a contract and  I immediately called my husband at work to squeal in his ear. LOL

How old were you when you read your first romance book?

I think I was probably around 11 or 12 when I started sneaking all my mom’s romance novels and I was hooked.

What are you currently working on, and what else is in the wings?

I’m working on a m/f/m ménage story that I hope to get wrapped up soon and then I really need to get back to all the half-finished books on my computer.

What is your reaction to people who say one of the following…”Oh you write romance, I thought you were a real writer”, “Romance isn’t a real writing career” or the ever popular “Oh, one of those books”.

Honestly I’ve never personally had someone say something negative about romance writing to my face.  I’ve had a few men tease me about the romance part and where I get my ideas LOL but they are always fascinated by how the whole publication process works etc.

Where can readers find you?

Website http://www.laurenfraser.com

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/Lauren.Fraser.Author

Twitter  http://www.twitter.com/lauren_fraser

And for the silly side – What is your favorite type of chocolate?

I am a HUGE chocoholic so I love it all. Sheesh I’m not sure I could narrow it down to just one but I guess if I had to pick I’d say mint chocolate. Purdy’s has these fantastic little mint meltie bars. Oy, they are so good.