Hi Readers I have a real treat for you today! My guest author interview is bestselling author, Opal Carew. Ms. Carew pens several Contemporary Erotic series including the Mastered By series and the Ready to Ride series about hot, alpha male bikers—yum! You have to check these books out—they are hot enough to set you on fire. So of course, I had a few questions for Ms Carew.

**After the interview be sure to

click the link for a FREE book from Opal**

1. What inspired you to begin writing? And when did you first start putting your stories down on paper or on your computer screen?

After fifteen years of working as a computer programmer, I stopped work to have my kids and I knew I needed to do something different with my life. When I was home with my babies, I started reading contemporary romance for the first time and I fell in love with the genre. Before that, I had always been a hard core Science Fiction fan. (I have books from my dad dating back to the thirties, including the first publication of the Foundation trilogy by Isaac Asimov as a serialization in a pulp magazine.) I still love science fiction, but reading romance opened up a new world for me. I loved seeing inside the characters’ heads, especially the heroines, and seeing them overcome the obstacles, both external and internal, to embracing the love of their lives.

The more I read (and I read a lot with those late night feedings!), the more I came up with ideas of my own. Finally, I started to put words down on virtual paper, and that’s how I got started.

2. You write several different series of Contemporary romance. Do you have a favorite series—one you keep returning back to? Or do you just write whatever series you are interested in at the moment?

I’m a hybrid author, which means I publish with a traditional publisher (St. Martin’s Press) as well as self-publishing. St. Martin’s wasn’t really interested in having me do series, so I started doing them as part of my self-publishing. In fact, since I didn’t have time in my schedule to do full-length books in addition to my St. Martin’s books, I wrote short stories whenever I had spare time and did these as series that I could build on.

I have my Red Hot Fantasies series, which is about a five friends who arrange to bring their sexual fantasies to life. One of these stories was The Office Slave, which spawned its own series. I have wanted to finish this series for quite a while now and I’ve finally pulled it together and have all seven stories finished! My readers had been waiting for #4 MY NEW MASTER for longer than I intended, but it’s available now and 5 & 6 are up for preorder for March. The final story will be up for preorder next week.

I also have a continuous series called Mastered By. Each story is standalone, but all have a BDSM theme. I love exploring the D/s relationships through my characters! MASTERED BY THE CEO will be out in April and I plan to follow that with MASTERED BY MY CAPTOR, MASTERED BY THE SHEIKH, then MASTERED BY THE BILLIONAIRE, all coming out this year!

3. Have you ever tried writing another genre? Regency or Sci-fi or anything a little more “out there?” And is there any truth to the rumor that you write even naughtier books under another name?

I think I’ve tried most romance genres, except historical. I’ve done futuristic, science fiction, fantasy, urban fantasy, and suspense. Everything I write as Opal is very erotic. When I first started publishing, I had to pull back the sexual explicitness of my stories, so when my rights reverted from the ebook publisher who published those, I self-published them under the name Amber Carew, to differentiate them from my hotter works. (They’re still pretty hot, though.)

Yes, it is true that I have a hidden pseudonym where I write no-holds-barred erotica stories, but I’m keeping the name under wraps for a while.

4. Do you have any favorite TV shows or movies that inspire you?

Haha! One of my favorite shows is The Big Bang Theory, but it doesn’t really inspire me for my writing. I just love it because it appeals to my geeky side. The characters’ interests match my own so closely! Lol!

I also enjoy American Idol. I love the music, but I also love watching the contestants’ journeys. I love seeing them grow through the show and overcome all the obstacles. It reminds me of the difficult journey to publication and I can empathize with the strong desire to follow your dream and do whatever you can to make it come true!

5. What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

When new writers ask my advice, I always say to: concentrate on improving your craft (no matter how far along you are, you can always grow), find other writers to interact with, and persevere.

I believe no matter where we are in our writing career, we can always improve and grow. Take courses, go to conferences, or just read other authors and see how they handle things you have trouble with. When you’re new, it’s particularly important to find out where your strengths and weaknesses are. A good way to do this is to take a course where the instructor will critique your work. Also, running your work by another author, preferably one with more experience than you can help a lot. Be open to the advice they give you.

Finding other authors to interact with is huge. They can connect you to resources that can help you with all aspects of the writing life, from improving your writing, to knowing where to submit your work, to giving you moral support when you need it. They know the stumbling blocks, or are experiencing them at the same time as you. Going through it together makes you all stronger.

Finally, if you want to be a successful author, you must be ready to persevere. If you’re trying to get published with a traditional publisher, you’ll probably face many rejections along the way. That doesn’t mean you’re not good enough; it might just mean that editor doesn’t love your voice, or that the book you sent them doesn’t suit their needs right now. If you’re going to self-publish, you have a lot to learn and have to figure out how to balance life with writing and all the things you have to do and learn around producing, publishing, and promoting you books. There’s a lot to do and a lot that can feel overwhelming, but if this is your true passion, it’s well worth it.

6. What do you feel has been the most challenging thing you’ve encountered as a writer?

The first was getting published. I wanted to be published by one of the big six traditional publishers and that was a very difficult proposition. At that time self-publishing through on-line retailers like Amazon was not an option. I was thrilled to be accepted by St. Martin’s back in 2006 and have been publishing about 3 books a year with them since then. (Perseverance paid off!)

More recently, the biggest challenge has been to keep up with the changes in the market and to promote my books effectively so people hear about them.

This year, there were some scheduling issues and I’ll only be having one novel out with St. Martin’s in 2016. That meant I had to hustle to come up with another plan. I am pushing myself to have at least one release per month this year. (Some months I’m having three or more releases, but that’s because some are related short stories.)

7. Do you write to music? If so, what kind and how do you use it to set the mood for your writing?

In general, I don’t write to music. I find it distracts me. In the past, I used to write to classical music like Mozart because it is supposed to help your creativity, but I don’t do that often now.

Sometimes, I do like to put on a specific song to tap into an emotional situation for a scene. One example is Breathe by Faith Hill. I actually used it in a scene in my current writing project for St. Martin’s.

8. What is your current release? Give me all the juicy details and I want a tasty excerpt too!

Haha! I have so many releases coming out right now, I’m not sure which one to call my current one! I’m in the middle of publishing The Office Slave series, with books 5&6 coming out starting next week followed by a duet (box set) with both stories. All are up for preorder now. Then the seventh story will be out in April and I’ll be publishing it alone and as part of a duet with a bonus story following another character from the series.

I also have MASTERED BY THE CEO coming out in April.

And a fun new project I’m working on for St. Martin’s, which will be coming out in digital only in July, has a chef as the hero… tattooed, domineering, and definitely too hot to handle. Good thing it’s set against a blizzardy Minneapolis winter, so the heroine doesn’t go up completely in flames.

This blurb for the duet of book 3&4 from The Office Slave series will give you an idea of what that series is all about.

Sylvia has always had a sizzling fantasy about submitting to four irresistible and dominant business partners. Given the opportunity to live out that fantasy, Sylvia jumped at the chance. But when Mr. Grant, the senior partner, showed up, he turned her submission into something very real.

Now she is exploring what it means to be in a Dominant/submissive relationship with a man who seems to gain more pleasure from watching her with other men than giving her what she really wants. Him.

Mr. Grant has never experienced a submissive as willing and desirable as Sylvia. Everything about her makes him want her, eroding the strict control he keeps over himself when mastering a woman. No submissive has ever come close to breaking through his carefully erected barrier of indifference. Until now.

Sylvia tries to reach past Mr. Grant’s self-imposed walls to touch the man beneath, but when he finds himself in danger of losing control, he takes drastic steps that will leave them both reeling.

Did you say you wanted an except, too?

This is from The Office Slave, #4 HER NEW MASTER.

Mr. King couldn’t believe his good luck. Grant was a fool to have let Sylvia go. The woman was obviously totally and hopelessly in love with him. Grant was probably just as in love with her, too, but couldn’t deal with the feelings.

Which was Mr. King’s good fortune. He hoped and prayed that in Grant’s absence, she would learn to depend on him. That her feelings for him would grow. If he could have even a fraction of what Grant had with her, he would be a happy man.

He heard footsteps on the stairs and glanced toward the doorway. He was waiting for her in the family room by the fireplace. When she stepped into the room, totally naked, his breath caught.

She was stunning. Her long, dark hair cascaded around her naked shoulders and her beautiful blue eyes were downcast. His gaze fell to her pert, full breasts, the nipples hard and pointing forward. Was she cold or turned on?

His gaze lingered, then glided down her taut stomach to her naked pussy. He longed to slide his fingers inside her, to see if she was wet. And he could order her over here and do just that.

But he wanted to give her time.

“What can I do to serve you, Master?”

He smiled. The word Master on her lips—referring to him—made his cock ache with need.

“Come sit with me.”

She walked toward him.

“Here. By my feet.” He pointed to the large, round cushion on the floor.

She knelt on it. The way he’d placed it, she was between his calves.

“Sit and relax. Lean against me,” he said as she knelt rigidly, facing away from him.

She shifted, sitting on the pillow and leaning against the couch. He lifted her arm so it curled over his thigh.

He turned on the television and started a movie. He stroked her hair as he watched, like she was a favorite pet. After a while, she relaxed more and settled her head on his knee. When one movie ended, he started another, not wanting to move from this glorious position.

But partway in, he could sense her restlessness.

“What would you like, Sylvia?”

* * *

Sylvia turned her head, still resting on his muscular thigh, and gazed at him. She wanted to be loved. She wanted to be cared for.

Mr. Grant did neither.

But would Mr. King?

“It’s all right. You can tell me.” He smiled kindly.

Her heart welled and she needed… she wanted… to be desired.

She sucked in a breath, then surged up and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. Her lips merged with his and he answered by sweeping his tongue into her mouth, his arms gliding around her and holding her close to him.

She trembled in his arms, needing so much more.

“I want to feel you inside me,” she murmured against his mouth. “I want you to make love to me slowly and deeply.”

She wanted him to fill her so full she couldn’t feel the emptiness any more.

But she was overstepping. Would he turn her down? Discipline her?

His hand glided down her side, sending her flesh tingling.

“Then that’s what I’ll do,” he murmured.

His words made her quiver. She climbed onto the couch, kneeling over his lap and her hands slid down his chest, then found his zipper. She pulled it down and reached inside for the prize.

His cock was thick and solid in her grip. Too big to wrap her fingers all the way around.

His fingers glided down her stomach, then cupped her mound. His middle finger nudged against her, then slipped inside.

“You’re wet and ready for me.”

“Yes.”

She pressed his cockhead to her slick slit and glided it along the folds. Stroking her aroused flesh. Then she centered it and lowered her body. The plum-sized head stretched her as it slid inside. Once the bulbous tip was all the way in, she paused, then locked her gaze with his intense blue one.

“I want to be inside you, my love,” he said. “Deeply buried in your hot, wet depths.”

She nodded as she slowly lowered herself, taking him bit by bit. His thick, hard column gliding deeper into her body.

It felt so good. So comforting.

It was so clear that he wanted her.

Finally, he was fully buried in her depths. She stared into his eyes… the intimacy in their joined gazes almost more intimate than the joining of their bodies.

He smiled and kissed her lips. Gently. Lovingly.

Then he moved, pivoting his hips to rock his cock inside her. Her eyes closed as her head fell back at the exquisite feel of him stroking her insides. His hands wrapped around her hips and he lifted her slowly, then guided her back down again. The sizzling caress of his erection inside her took her breath away.

Then he rolled her under him. His big body covered hers as she lay back on the couch. His cock moved inside her. Smooth as silk. Filling her slowly, then drawing back. Like a slow deep inhale. Then exhale. His hard flesh quivering along her nerve endings.

She hooked her fingers over his shoulders.

“Oh, faster now. Please.”

He smiled and drew back, then glided deep. When his cock was all the way inside she sucked in a breath. Then he did it again. She shivered beneath him, pleasure washing through her.

“It feels so good.” She murmured the breathless words into his ear and he thrust forward, making her gasp.

She squeezed him, wanting to keep him inside her forever, but momentum kept him gliding in and out. Pumping into her. Her pleasure building.

“Ohhhh, yes.” She gripped his shoulders tighter. “Ohhh, Master.”

“Fuck, sweetness,” he said on a groan. Then he jolted forward, pinning her to the couch.

She felt him spasm, then liquid heat filled her. She shuddered as an orgasm washed over her, crumbling any barriers left between them. She clung to him as she moaned in ecstasy.

After a few moments, when she finally caught her breath, he stroked her hair and lifted his head to gaze down at her. The warmth in his eyes melted her heart.

“I shouldn’t have asked you to do that. You are my Master. You decide.”

He stroked her hair from her face. “Do you regret it?”

She shook her head. “But I should be punished.”

He smiled. “Do you want to be punished?”

She nodded. But not because the thought was arousing. Even though it was.

It was just the way it should be.

He rolled to a sitting position and she stood up, then turned her back to him, presenting her bare ass.

His hand slapped her left butt. But then his lips pressed against her stinging flesh and he kissed her there. Then his lips moved away and she jumped as he slapped her other cheek.

He kissed that side, too.

He did this several times, until her ass was burning, but his lips soothed her hot flesh.

He turned her toward him. “Are you happy now?”

She shook her head. “I must be very bad.”

“That’s why I just punished you.” His eyes lit up with his grin.

“No. I mean I must be bad at being a slave. That’s why Mr. Grant didn’t want me.”

Warmth and compassion filled his eyes as he shook his head. “No. Grant is a fool. You are a perfect slave.”

His hand caressed her face, then tucked her hair behind her ear, sending tingles along her neck and down her spine.

“And as far as being bad.” His hands cupped her burning ass and stroked lightly. “You are just exactly the right amount of bad for me.”

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