So, here's the plan:

1.  Answer the following ten questions about a current WIP.
2.  Tag five other writers and link their blogs so we can all hop over and read their answers. It's that simple.

1.] What is the title of your book? 

Torch Ginger. It's called that for a reason–you have to read it to see why.

One of the photos Mike Neal took that the cover designer is working with.

2.] Where did the idea for the book come from?
I get intrigued with crimes that actually happen here in Hawaii. They stick in my mind, a puzzle begging for a solution. On Kaua`i, a lot of people have disappeared, including a close high school friend. So I developed a mystery for Lei to solve involving missing people, cults, and craziness. It's a potent cocktail!

3.] What genre would your book fall under?
Crime suspense with a twist of love triangle.

4.] Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
Ooh, I love this question. I'm seeing Grace Park playing Lei, with a few freckles and curly hair… Stevens is… er… this guy:

Don't know who this guy is but he's Stevens. Unlike some writers, I have my characters in my mind and then am forever looking for a picture that resembles them.

5.] What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
The island of Kaua`i is remote jungle, golden beaches and ancient culture—but the homeless  are disappearing in paradise, and only Detective Lei Texeira seems to notice.

6.] Is your book published or represented?
It is self-published, despite heroic efforts on the part of my lovely agent. I gave the publishers six months to pick it up.

7.] How long did it take you to write?
Oh dear. That's a tricky answer. I cranked it out in six months, with NaNoWriMo as a kickstarter…but I was “pantsing” when I did the first draft, and it needed two rounds of professional editing. I cut close to 50,000 words off this manuscript, and said, “never again will I write without an outline!” I learned my lesson on this manuscript–that in this genre, planning is essential unless you want to be revising forever. So, final answer: I just got done  with the final version of this and sent it to the copyeditor last week. Three years, people.

8.] What other books within your genre would you compare it to?

Hm. It's kind of a cross between J.D. Robb's “In Death” series meeting the recent “The Descents” by Kaui Hemmings.

9.] Which authors inspired you to write this book?

I have to go back to my overall influencers in writing, because no one author got me going on this book. My heroine, Diana Gabaldon, writes in an entirely different genre but the enduring, multiple-book romantic pairing in her books inspired me to develop Lei and Stevens' bumpy romance. In mystery, my influences are  Michael Connolly, James Patterson, and Lisa Gardner.

10.] Tell us anything else that might pique our interest in your book

Here's the back cover blurb I'm working on:

The island of Kaua`i is remote jungle, golden beaches and ancient culture—but the homeless are disappearing in paradise, and only Detective Lei Texeira seems to notice.

Detective Lei Texeira flees to Kaua`i after a failed engagement, where she stumbles across a pattern of disappearances connected to a bizarre cult—or is it just one madman at work? In Lei's world, everyone's guilty until proven innocent.

In Blood Orchids Lei battled her personal demons and won—now they've come roaring back with reinforcements, including charming real estate magnate Alika Wolcott and honorable former fiancé Michael Stevens. In the midst of the biggest case that’s ever happened on sleepy, gorgeous Kaua`i, Lei must also detect whom her heart wants.

TORCH GINGER IS COMING OUT NEXT MONTH. SIGN UP FOR EMAIL NOTIFICATION (on sidebar) FOR WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE.

And now, five awesome writers whose work you want to watch:

Linda Nagata (science fiction and fantasy)

J.C. Martin  (crime mystery)

Laurie Hanan (Hawaii mystery)

Holly Robinson (women's fiction)

David Bishop (mystery)