Uncaged welcomes Patricia Eddy, as seen in the December issue of Uncaged Book Reviews.
Uncaged: Mistletoe and Mochas is a contemporary military novella, but you also have other genres you write in, such as paranormal and BDSM. Can you tell the readers more about your different series? What influences the different genres?
Sure! I love all forms of romance. My first books were all paranormal romance, and I have a special place in my heart for creating rich worlds and lore. But, I just absolutely love writing the BDSM romances as well. They’re so much fun because I can just let loose.
All of my books and series have different inspirations. By the Fates came from a dark time in my life. In Blood came from a place of hope when I was feeling particularly good about the world around me. A Shift in the Water…well, werewolves are just fun. 🙂
Uncaged: This is our holiday issue – can you tell us of some of your holiday traditions and some things you love to do during the Christmas season?
I don’t usually have a lot of time to spend on all of the holiday trappings, but I do a few things every year. My family has always had a real Christmas tree, and when I have the time, I like to go cut it down myself. I collect Goebel Angel Bells, so those always go on the mantle. My most important holiday tradition, though, is baking my grandmother’s Christmas cookies—both sugar cookies and gingerbread men and women. We thought her recipes were lost for many years, but my cousin found them three or four years ago.
Uncaged: As a reviewer, I’m always curious as to what authors can take away from the reviews, do you read them and what do you take away from the reviews?
I read most of my reviews. With fourteen books out now, it’s hard to keep up sometimes. I look for the sentiment of the review. What part of my book spoke to the reader? What parts didn’t speak to the reader? I’m always trying to improve my writing, my plotting, and my characters. So it helps me to know what readers do and don’t like. For example, in my vampire novel, readers loved the connection between the two characters. In my werewolf series, they loved the vulnerability that my alpha wolf showed while he was also being strong. Those types of sentiments are the ones that help me shape future characters. It works both ways, as well. Negative reviews are just as valuable when trying to grow as a writer, even though they’re much less fun to read.
Uncaged: Can you tell us what you have coming up next?
Next up, I have two books in the Restrained series. All Tied Up For New Year’s and In His Collar will both be released in the next two months. After that, I’m going to go back to Revelations in Blood and A Shift in the Earth.
Uncaged: Where do you come up with your characters and their names? How much do you pull from people you know?
There’s a little bit of me in every one of my heroines. But I try not to pull too much from those around me unless someone’s asked me if they can be in one of my books. In A Shift in the Water, a couple I know asked to be included. And though they are crazy in love and very happy, they both wanted me to work it out so that her character killed his in the end. So, I did it. I’m just glad they’re still together in real life.
As for character names…I use a name generator for many of them. Sometimes a name will just come to me, but most of the time, I go through a couple of names before I’m satisfied.
Uncaged: What is your favorite parts about being an author? What have you found to be the least favorite?
My favorite part of being an author is hearing from fans. There really is nothing better than an email that says how much your book touched someone or how excited they are for the next book.
My least favorite part of being an author is all of the non-writing work that has to be done. Advertising, organizing, social media…I can work all weekend long and not take a single break and write zero words.
Uncaged: What do you like to do when you aren’t writing?
Well, usually, some of the non-writing tasks that are required to be an author. But I also love to play GuildWars 2, I’m learning to play the guitar, and I enjoy yoga.
Uncaged: I know that my favorites change as I read more and more books, but was the last book you loved? The last book you wanted to throw against a wall (good or bad)?
Ha! I haven’t wanted to throw a book against a wall lately. The last book I read and loved was Mastering Her Senses by Laura Kaye. I’m currently reading Devil in Disguise by Cynthia Eden.
Uncaged: What would you like to say to fans, and where can they follow you?
To fans, I’d say don’t be shy about emailing if you have any questions. I know I’m an introvert—in person. I was at a writing conference two weeks ago and I couldn’t even force myself to go up to one of my author heroes and introduce myself. Despite being shy, though, I love chatting about books. Find me on Facebook and Instagram in particular and comment. Start a conversation. I also want to tell my fans that I really appreciate them being so patient with me while I took eighteen months off from writing in 2015-2016. I had some health and personal issues I had to take care of, and I know it was hard for fans not to have the next books in the series they loved. I’m back now, and I’m going to finish up all of my current series before starting another one!
[symple_box color=”black” fade_in=”false” float=”center” text_align=”left” width=””]Patricia D. Eddy lives in many worlds. Witches, vampires, and shifters inhabit one of them, military men and women fill another, with sexy Doms and strong subs carving out the final slice of her literary universe. She admits to eleven novels (though there are at least five unfinished drafts on her desk right now), all while working a full-time job, running half-marathons, and catering to the every whim of her three cats. Despite this whirlwind, she still finds time to binge watch Doctor Who, all of the Netflix Marvel shows, and most recently, The Handmaid’s Tale. Oh, and she hopes to one day be able to say that she plays the guitar. Right now, she mostly tortures the strings until they make noise.[/symple_box]
