Hello Readers and welcome.  We are talking with Jackie Rose, author of Warrior's Captive: I, Briseis, Prince Charlie's Witch, Captive Master and her latest release I am Undead: And I Vote-Tarot:  Six of Wands.  Thank you, Jackie, for your time and patience with me during this interview process.  

Could you give us a brief on your newest release, I’m Undead—and I Vote (Tarot Six of Wands).

It starts when a pretty political activist named Tiffany Golden endures the bite of the vampire (not to mention his really bad Bela Lugosi impersonation). But whether she’s undead or alive, she still has an election to help win. So she starts turning out (and digging up) the vampire vote, in order to put a sexy senator into the White House and herself into his bed. The Six of Wands stands for triumph, power and acclaim, which is just what they get for swinging the election in a very close year.

Jackie your story line is different, and I like it. Where did you get this idea?

I suppose it came from the bumper sticker—“I’m Pro-Life—and I Vote”. Or it may have been “I’m Pro-Choice.” Suddenly I thought of vampires going around saying, “I’m Undead—and I Vote” and the effect that this new pressure group would have on cynical candidates, veteran radicals, TV talk show hosts and even the publishers of erotic vampire romances. I wound up sending up almost everyone and everything involved in national politics, especially in a close election year—like this one.

Which of your books is your favorite or has a special place in your heart?  Could you please tell us why?

It must be Warrior’s Captive. I fell in love with Achilles when I read the Iliad in college, and I wanted to be Briseis. Failing that, I wanted to write about them. I kept picturing the cover, with his helmet covering his face as she reaches up to embrace him, representing the hero and his hero-worshipper. Since she is traditionally shown with blonde hair and a blue gown, I imagined that, too. When Martine Jardin created my cover for Extasy Books, she made my dream come true.

Your stories vary, what is your favorite genre to write?

It always seems to be the one I am working on at the time. Right now, I am writing a contemporary romance about two TV “shout show” stars who are in constant conflict and (naturally) fall in love. “Dueling Duo” is part of the Tarot series, representing the Ten of Swords—symbolizing melodramatic misfortunes, often more imagined than real—which seems to be the specialty of all shout shows.

Do you have a favorite author or authors? How does their work influence you?

I would have to start with Homer, who composed the Iliad, and Richmond Lattimore, who provided the magnificent translation that inspired me. Also, Harriett Beecher Stowe, who created “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” and therefore Simon Legree, who re-appears in my “Captive Master.”  And in promoting “I’m Undead,” I pay tribute to a third influence—a humorous one this time--by saying that it features “the battiest bunch of bloodsuckers this side of Terry Pratchett.”

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

I remember sitting in class in elementary school, writing a romantic story about a woman in the Old West who is simply giddy with joy about being held up by Billy the Kid. She may have turned into Briseis, who was just as happy about being carried away by Achilles. After all those years, the basic theme seems to have stayed the same: legendary heroes and the women who worship them.

Do you have any advice for the aspiring writers out there?

Everything shows. If you are writing about Vikings because you’re in love with them, that shows. If you’re doing it because you think there’s a market for Viking romances, that shows. And if you wouldn’t know who Erik the Red was if he hit you with a battle axe, that shows. Moral: Write about what you really love and then learn all you can about it.

Are you working on anything now? Could you give us a sneak peak?

This is the start of Dueling Duo, and please remember that it is a work in progress:

When she threw her Styrofoam cup of water in his face on camera, the rating topped “The Capital Gang.” If it had been hot coffee, the producer realized with some regret, they would even outdone “The O’Reilly Factor.”

But the cold water was good enough, especially since the cameraman had the good sense to zoom in immediately on Buck Patrick’s beefy face, which was turning even redder beneath his receding dark hairline, and the soaked collar beneath. The camera then pulled back only far enough to show Cassandra Bailey trying to dab the water away in an obvious attempt to make amends, while he pushed her hands angrily away.

Even better, as the producers realized, the issue that had caused the uproar had not been one that would normally be described as “hot.” On the contrary, using federal tax money to fight oak disease had been added to the schedule at the last moment, after the Right to Rape advocate had cancelled. Somehow, though, his saying he was not boo-hoo-hooing over the problems of the lumber industry drove her into a rage.

“You don’t really care about anyone’s problems, do you?” she had shouted, and thrown the water before he had a chance to retort that the real problem was everyone looking for federal handouts.

For the next two minutes, the national audience was treated to total silence as a makeup artist ran onto the set with a paper towel and dabbed at Buck Patrick’s face, while both ignored Cassandra Bailey’s efforts to help. The studio audience, by contrast, was equally divided between cheering, booing and gasps of disbelief, leading to a few shouting and shoving matches. Fortunately for all of them, that was the end of the program.

“I can’t tell you how sorry I am,” she told the producer.

“She ought to be sorry!” her adversary snarled. “You’re both lucky I don’t sue for assault.”

The producer did not seem to have heard them. “Great show, Kids,” he said. And good thing it’s a live show, he assured himself silently, because I could probably never persuade her to throw the water again. As it was, he realized with satisfaction, it would be all that the security guards could do to keep the studio spectators from breaking into fistfights in the lobby. Now, that was what he called live television!            

How can our readers get in touch with you?

Jackierose1184@hotmail.com. I chose that “1184” in honor of the accepted date of the Trojan War: 1184 bc.

Jackie, could you tell us about some of your other books?

In the Coming Soon section of Extasy Books, you can see the covers for “Prince Charlie’ s Witch” and “Captive Master.”  In both of these stories, I am bringing historical figures and fictional characters together, both in bed and out.  “Prince Charlie’s Witch” is about a time traveler who goes back to help Bonnie Prince Charlie conquer England—and London’s two most famous actresses, too. His two key supporters are soon fighting for her hand: a rugged, powerful Highland laird and a charming, ruthless Irish rebel. As for “Captive Master”--when I heard that the Five of Wands was available in the Tarot series, I started begging the editor for the assignment.  That card is illustrated by Five People of Different Colors Fighting Each Other—a pretty good description of the Civil War. That gave me a chance to write a sequel to “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” re-uniting Simon Legree and Cassy, his chief concubine, who had escaped from his plantation at the end of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s famous American novel.

Ten years later, he is a Confederate prisoner, in the hospital where Cassy is an army nurse. She also has an exciting new lover—namely, General Sherman. So aided by Sambo, his former slave overseer, Simon escapes to take revenge against the woman he blames for all his problems, including the war itself—namely, Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Jackie, thank you so much for allowing me to ask you these questions. If you would like to see any of Jackie Rose’s work, please check out here, with news on her current books and new releases.