Author Amber Hipple

Author Amber Hipple

Let’s start getting your shine on. Tell us who you are beyond an author.

I suppose the first place to start is if I want to be sexy, like my book or mysterious like a woman is supposed to be. I think I'm gonna go with honest though. I'm really rather dull. I work two jobs to make ends meet since my divorce and I've got a cat. I crochet, play video games, and read a lot. I'm a bit of a dork and a spaz. I still feel like the nerdy kid with crooked teeth and funny clothes that no one wants to play with. I've never outgrown it and as a result, I'm very shy. I've learned to overcome that, however. I take life by the horns. I just plunge in and hope for the best. Because of that, I can be a little overwhelming and people either love me or hate me. I don't like the hate part; I'm terribly vulnerable. I guess, I'm just a person with the same hang ups and issues as anyone else.

Show us when you realized you had a passion for writing?

I don't think I have a passion for writing. I have a passion for reading and like many people, I wanted to see if I could do it too. I continue to do it because I want to be good at it. I realize that I have a gift for language and I want to hone it. This is my usual compulsion. The other reasons I write is because I have so much inside me that I need to pour out. But, back to the question at hand, I realized that I needed to write when I was a moody teenager. I had these intense feelings of loneliness and a need to experience more, and I poured this out in poetry. Eventually, the poetry wasn't enough and I found myself writing longer pieces that became stories.

We understand that uniqueness counts in the literary world, but we equally understand there must be relatability. Tell us an author with whom you share similar writing styles.

I'd say I share similar styles with two authors. One would be Anne Rice. The woman has a penchant for description that I've always envied and enjoyed. I try to emulate that. It lends a richness to stories that is especially useful in erotica. The other would be Jamie Joy Gatto. Jamie Joy writes or rather, did write, she's 'retired', erotica that was emotional and deeply moving. The sex was arousing yes, but also a vehicle for a deeper things than romance and getting your rocks off.

Show us how your styles are similar.

Ah, my styles are similar to Anne Rice in the way that I layer on descriptions. I can be almost flowery sometimes. I tend to spend a great deal of time on things that are really of little importance to the plot because I want to bring to life a certain feeling or setting. Now, as far as Jamie Joy, our subject matter is almost the same. I can't write just sex. Everything I've ever written has had some emotional quality to it which is a great deal like JJ's.

Tell us your preferred writing genre and the genre you prefer to read.

I don't really have a preferred writing genre. I've tried my hand at erotica, horror, humor, main stream fiction, fantasy, etc. I just write a story, regardless of what it's about. It's easier to sell erotica, however, so I usually stick to that. I prefer to read fantasy. I'm a bit of a dork in that respect. But, I'll read anything. A book just has to be good.

Show us what your audience looks like.

I would hope everyone, but I've always envisioned most of my readers as open-minded women who understand intense emotions. Age doesn't make a difference, but she'll have had a few long term relationships and will be able to understand the pain associated with love that often happens without either partner trying to wound the other.

Tell us an important lesson, on the business side of publishing, that you've learned on your journey.

Writing doesn't make you rich. Plain and simple. Don't quit your job to be a writer. Quit your job after you've become a writer, if you can, but don't expect to make it big just because you write a good yarn. There's always someone out there who's better than you or a publisher who doesn't want what you're selling. So don't expect to be rolling in the dough.

Going back to the beginning, show us the day you received your publication offer or the first time you saw your bound book.

I want to talk about the first time I saw my contract. That's when it all became real to me. There it was, in black and white, the things I'd been working towards for seven years. I squealed and clutched it to my chest. I took it out of the envelope and filled it out with a good pen using the utmost precision. I was reverent.

Tell us your expectations of an aspiring author approaching you for information about writing/publishing?

I don't really have any expectations. Mostly because I don't think I'm the best for advice, but if someone were to approach me, I'd expect them to have written something before and had it lauded by an English teacher, a contest, maybe a newspaper. It would be very odd to just decide to be a writer if you've never tried writing.

Ready to shine? Tell us the name of your book.

Bittersweet. One word. You can find it March 30th at Logical-Lust Publications, an imprint of LL Publications

From one of your character's point of view, show us why we should buy it. From a character's point of view?

Ah, buy it so they know they aren't alone. These men and women I write about are hurting, they're reaching out. Buy the book, empathize with them.

Tell us where we can find you on the internet.

Best place to keep track of me would be http://redhipple.livejournal.com or http://www.myspace.com/amberhipple

Thanks Amber for taking time out of your busy schedule to share with us.