Fall Again

1.       How did you start writing romance?

I’m sensitive, compassionate and supportive, so I guess was predestined to write romance!  I’m one of those people who will cry hysterically at a Hallmark or even the right McDonald’s commercial. I’ll watch films like Gone with the Wind or Casablanca and pray that the ending will somehow be different with the iconic couple ending up together and living happily ever after.

I’ve loved romance novels since I was old enough to read them and often placed myself into the role of the heroine. I was devastated when I did not attend my senior prom (I attended an all girl’s school, didn’t have a boyfriend and simply had no one to ask.) That night I found solace in Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca. Shortly after prom night I started writing my own romantic short stories.

2.       Plotter or pantster?

Pantster! For me I work better without a net (an outline or specific notes). Before I begin a writing session I have a good idea where my characters are when I begin and a pretty good idea where they’ll be when I finish (and this might change). But once my imagination takes over and words begin to flow onto the page I hang on tightly and enjoy the ride. I’m always amazed at where my imagination takes me. I’ve tried writing with an outline, but my writing is stronger when I allow my imagination to take the driver’s seat...and being spontaneous is much more fun!

3.       What are three things you have on your writing desk?

*a beverage which differs with the time of day. AM sessions require my husband’s amazing Puerto Rican coffee. For late morning and afternoon sessions I stick to water, sometimes Perrier but most of the time a bottle of whatever I have on hand. I like a glass of Pinot Grigio nearby for late afternoon and evening sessions, my rule being one glass of wine per session.

*a remote for music, because my writing sessions are always accompanied by music. Music helps to set the emotional tone for my writing sessions.

*a cat.  Usually not by choice, but what can you do?

4.       Favorite food?

Don’t have one!

5.       Tell us a little about your new release. What character in the book really spoke to you?

Fall Again: Beginnings is the first book in a four part contemporary romantic series which is set against the backdrop of working actors. (I’m a working actor and you write what you know!) This is the story of Marc and Lauren; two people who are perfect for each other, they just meet at the wrong time in their lives. The series follows the lives and careers of Marc & Lauren and their closest friends over two decades.

While Fall Again is the story of Marc and Lauren (I adore both of them!), I also wanted to explore their most intimate friendships. Many of us meet lifelong friends in our twenties. Marc and Lauren have a strong support system in their friends who’ll recur throughout the series.

 While writing, I became especially fond of Mel.  Mel Holden is a good friend to both Marc and Lauren; she’s Lauren’s confident and roommate, and is convinced she and Marc were siblings in a past life because their connection is too close to be explained any other way. Mel is extremely grounded, fun loving and fiercely protective of the people she loves. Mel also has no problems speaking her mind and telling people things that are difficult to hear. Mel is the type of friend that all of us should have in our lives.

6.       I write because ____...

I write because I have to write.

7.       What is your favorite type of character to write about?

I love writing and developing characters that are very human; which means they are a complicated combination of emotions, desires and needs. While they may have positive qualities, they also have flaws and imperfections that are always interesting to explore.  I love a character that has growth potential, even if the character does not realize this initially. While I love writing to a character’s strengths, I also enjoy exploring their weaknesses.

8.       What is the sexiest scene you ever wrote?

9.       Ohhhh…I really don’t want to give anything away, but this scene will be found in the Fall Again series.  I will quote a line from Tennessee William’s The Glass Menagerie. “Time is the longest distance between two places.”

10.   What advice would you give new authors in the erotica/romance field?

Write from the heart.

Write with honesty, kindness, sympathy and strength.

Be brave and don’t be afraid to take risks. Take big risks!

Forget the rules!

11.   What is next on your writerly horizon?

I’m currently in the final editing stages of the next novel in the Fall Again series, Lost Boy which will launch this fall. Afterwards I’ll be concentrating on launching the final two novels in the Fall Again series in 2016.

I’m toying with the idea of spinning two characters from Fall Again into their own series, but that’s way down the road. I’ll probably take a break from Fall Again and publish a stand-alone novel, A Private Family Matter which is the story of a family funeral and the insanity that often surrounds these occasions. This is a dark comedy.

Fall Again: Beginnings

By Donna Figueroa

Bio

Donna Figueroa is an actor and writer living and working in Los Angeles CA.  She has worked on stage and on the big and small screens. Her credits include appearances on several daytime dramas, voiceovers for animation, commercials and industrial projects, and several television commercials.

She is a producer and storyteller at The Story Salon, Los Angeles’s longest running storytelling venue where she has written, performed and developed 3 one person shows.

Donna considers herself an athletic shopper always in search of the ultimate bargain.

She lives in Hollywood with her husband writer/comedian Tony Figueroa, and their three neurotic cats.

Website: www.fallagainseries.com

FB: https://www.facebook.com/fallagainseries

Twitter: @fallagainseries        

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Blurb

What if you were to meet the perfect person - your best friend, soul mate and the great love of your life - but at the wrong time? That question is at the heart of Fall Again, a contemporary romantic series about two working actors set against the backdrop of New York, Los Angeles and points in-between.

In Beginnings you’ll meet Marc & Lauren in the optimistic New York City of the late 1980’s. Marc and Lauren meet when they are very young and building careers as professional actors in New York. Despite an obvious attraction, decorum dictates that their relationship remain platonic.

Over time Marc and Lauren find themselves struggling to maintain the façade of being just friends to those around them, as well as to each other. Regardless of their best efforts to remain friends Marc and Lauren fall in love.

http://www.amazon.com/Fall-Again-Beginnings-Donna-Figueroa-ebook/dp/B00ZKYSJM2/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1436099723&sr=1-1

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Excerpt

He heard her quick light footsteps coming up the three flights of stairs before she finally came into view on the landing at the bottom of last flight of stairs. 

As Lauren Phillips turned the corner she looked up at Marc and stopped, seeming surprised. “Marc?”

Marc responded as he took notice of the striking woman at the bottom of the stairs. “Yeah.”

 An expression of pleasant recognition crossed her face. “Oh my God… Marc Guiro! I didn’t realize that Mel’s friend Marc… was you!” She confidently bounded up the last flight of stairs seeming very happy to see him.

But Marc was confused.  This girl appeared to know him, but as far as he knew he had never laid eyes on her.

Lauren quickly realized this. “I’m Lauren Phillips. I went to NYU and we lived in Weisman Hall at the same time the last two years you were in school.  We were in different towers but I saw you in the cafeteria and in the laundry room from time to time.  You were two years ahead of me… but we were in a dance class together one semester.”

Marc looked at her closely. “I only took two dance classes while I was at NYU.” He continued to look at her blankly.

Lauren tried not to take this personally and attempted to play off the situation with humor.  “Well whichever class you’re thinking of now… I was probably in the other one.” 

Lauren flashed a cool controlled smile at Marc as Mel came into the hallway.

“Lauren…you made it!” 

Lauren ran to her roommate giving her a big hug. “Thank you for today!  It was wonderful!”

 Mel didn’t want to take credit for booking Lauren on her show.  Casting liked her look and personality.  All she had done was to deliver Lauren’s photograph and resume to the Clayton’s Crossing’s casting department. “No, Lauren that was all you.  I just gave casting your photograph.  Once they called you in for your interview I was out of it.”

 Lauren was suddenly aware that she was ignoring Marc and looked back towards him.

“Mel got me a day of background work on Clayton’s Crossing today!” Her excitement was getting the best of her.

“So I’ve heard.  That’s great!  Why don’t you both come inside?”

 Marc ushered them both into the apartment while still questioning himself.  Had he ever met this girl?  He would have remembered.

Lauren was attractive.  She had deep set dark brown eyes and dark hair which she was wearing pulled back into a perfect lose ponytail.  He could see that she was wearing a lot of makeup, but she would be after a day on set. The makeup only enhanced her high cheekbones and smooth skin.  She was dressed nicely in a gauzy long Indian skirt and blouse that she wore belted which showed off a tiny waist. She was slender.  Over her shoulder she carried a large tobacco colored leather satchel. 

But Marc found himself looking beyond her physical appearance.  She had what some might call a sparkling personality, not to mention a bright and wonderful smile. Lauren’s energy was contagious. When she came up the last flight of steps toward him, it was as if someone had turned on an incredibly bright light.