Interview with author Katrina LaCroix

We are happy to welcome Katrina LaCroix, author of Loose Lips Sink Ships, to the Brazen Broads Book Bash today.  To read our review of Katrina's darkly humorous book, click here.  

BB:  Where did the inspiration for Avery Leigh come from?

KL:  I've come to the conclusion that there are far too many sane characters in fiction, and that's a shame because crazy people are the most fun to read about! I just wanted someone who had no inhibitions, no morals, no restraints to keep her from getting what she wants. That's how Avery was born. Looking at her on the page, the most shocking part about her might be how confident she is despite being completely out of her mind.

BB:  What is your favorite scene from Loose Lips Sink Ships?

KL:  This is a hard question. I can't tell you how many times I laughed thinking some of this stuff up. I do love the sex scene, but I also love the scene when Avery finds out her younger sister is pregnant. Part of me wonders if Lori's master plan would actually work, the same part of me that I have to keep locked in the attic.

BB:  Do you feel more comfortable writing a female or male voice?

KL:  I do have an easier time writing females, though Avery is about as boyish as they come. For the most part though, I let the character's personality and motivation dictate their words and actions, without getting too deep into questions of "is this how a man talks?"

BB:  Do you plan stories out with outlines or just follow where they take you?

KL:  Although most of the time I do a lot of outlining, I didn't do so much with this one. As you pointed out in your review, this story is largely character driven, and so my goal was to have Avery and Carter bumping heads as much as possible. Most of the aspects of the story that don't directly have to do with their relationship came to me while I was writing it. I always say that it takes one brilliant idea to start a great novel and several more to finish it.

BB:  What are you writing now?

KL:  Now that Loose Lips Sinks Ships is out, I'm currently developing my next idea. Right now I've got this idea bubbling up for a more adult version of The Hunger Games, about a future reality TV show called "The 18 Year-Old Virgin" in which a group of hotties is thrown together in a house until there's only one virgin left standing. Is that a good idea? I honestly don't know. It would probably be filthy, and I'll have to wait for Loose Lips Sinks Ships to let me know if people want to read that sort of stuff.

BB:  Where do you like to write?

KL:  For me, it's not so much where I like to write, but the conditions under which I like to write. Perfect silence. No one around. Not drinking or eating anything. A solid couple of hours to myself. That allows me to get in my head and dig around until I find out what's in there. Most of the time I'm just writing at my desk, though I wish I had somewhere more exciting to write. My dream place to write would be at a frat party, though I doubt I'd do a word of writing. Maybe they wouldn't object if I just showed up with my laptop.

BB:  What's your background? 

KL:  I live by myself in New York City, but I'm actually from Western Pennsylvania. It can get pretty rural out there, and so the cool kids would always rent cabins in the middle of nowhere and do unprintable things. I'm lucky I made it to college, where I majored in Sociology. Basically, I got a degree in talking about my feelings.

BB:  Who are some of your favorite authors and why?

KL:  I love to read, and my favorite authors are too numerous to count. Most of them are completely over the edge in some way, William S. Burroughs, Stephen King, Sylvia Plath. Literature is about using these innocent little words to push the edge of what's acceptable.

Thanks so much to Alexandria and Moira at Brazen Broads Book Bash for having me! Loose Lips Sink Ships is available at Amazon.com and BN.com. I hope you like it!

We want to thank Katrina for joining us here, and we encourage everyone who likes a story with a real brazen broad to read her book.  You can contact her at katrinalacroix@yahoo.com