Murphy's Law by Lori Foster

EL: Elizabeth here with great news. LORI FOSTER'S new book MURPHY'S LAW IS OUT! As a bonus, you get a cover that is clever rather than cheesy. (gasp!)

LORI: Thanks so much. With that wonderful quote from you right below my name, I more than like it - I LOVE it!

EL: That's good, because I love your books! And now that I've got you cornered (bwhaha), I've got to ask about your books. All of them, including the ones that are related, basically can stand alone. Murphy’s Law, which follows Jude’s Law, is different. Questions that weren’t answered in Jude’s Law then are answered in Murphy's Law —like why May and Ashley are so close. Did readers ask you about that?

LORI: Actually, in Jude’s Law, I deliberately left several unanswered questions so that I could address them in Murphy’s Law. I’d just seen Kill Bill I and Kill Bill II when I came up with the ideas for those two related stories, and I loved the concept of parts of the story being complete, while other parts carried over to the next story.

In Jude’s Law, I wrapped up the romance for May and Jude. Let’s face it, I couldn’t leave the romance dangling in a romance novel! Readers would kill me.

EL: I’d have helped them!

LORI: Wait, wait! Don't hang me yet. I revealed the identity of the bad guy, too. But I left him on the loose so that Ashley and Quinton (the hero and heroine of Murphy’s Law) could deal with him. I thought that would be fun. (coughing a little here.)
Some readers loved how I did that, but a few others made sure I knew that they didn’t.

I hope after reading Murphy’s Law, they’ll decide it was worth the wait.

EL: Lori, as long as you keep writing, the readers will forgive you. Tim, May's brother, was easy to hate in Jude’s Law. Do you think readers will like him more in Murphy's Law?

LORI: I hope so. He has a lot of growing-up to do, but he’s not irredeemable, and he tried to prove that in Murphy’s Law.
Readers keep asking me if he’ll get his own story. The answer is no. LOL. I want readers to see Tim grow, but I don’t think I have the talent to make him into a true Foster-type hero!

EL: That’s the problem with creating a good villain. Or good side characters in general. Readers want to know more. So…will there be a love interest for Denny?

LORI: I’ve thought about it. I found Denny so appealing that I could really see him in a lead role. But if it happens, it won’t be for a while. I’m already busy at work on a whole different group of characters. They’re still involved with the fighting group of the SBC, but they’re totally unrelated to Law books.

EL: I love your heroes—they’re always yummy Alphas! You’re not going to change that, are you?

LORI: No ma’am.

EL: (looks around “for ma’am”)
Yikers, you mean me! Huh. I won’t kill you, but I might damage you lightly. But not so much you write Betas.

LORI: My bad! Sorry. It'll never happen again...(Quickly moving on now) I do love those Alpha guys. I’m not sure I could write them any other way. But I hope my Alphas aren’t obnoxious. As I’ve said before (and blogged about here) Alphas are misunderstood. They’re not abusive jerks. They’re take-charge guys who need to defend and protect everyone they consider smaller, weaker, older or younger than themselves. They’re heroes in the truest sense of the word. I just adore them!

EL: Have you ever written an Alpha you thought might be over the top?

LORI: Plenty of times. Joe Winston comes immediately to mind, and Jude Jamison from Jude’s Law. In Murphy’s Law, I saw Quinton as a little smoother than those two. Money can do that to a man, I suppose. But Quinton was still the “out to protect his small part of the world” kind of man. And as Denny quickly discovered, Quinton could be as protective (with the means to back up that instinct) as any other Alpha.
Because I let the heroes do their own thing, I’m unable to tone them down much. Luckily, heroines who can handle them show up hand-in-hand with the heroes.

EL: Speaking of your heroines... since Ashley and Quinton were both introduced in Jude’s Law, who spoke to you first?

LORI: Ashley definitely dropped in first, but once she did, Quinton Murphy appeared hot on her heels. That’s how it usually happens for me. I seldom plan my secondary characters – they just sort of pop up out of nowhere.

EL: Ashley and Quinton put shoes on the concept of “opposites.” Was it hard to make their attraction believable?

LORI: They surprised me at times. Ashley made it harder than Quinton did. Because he hadn’t suffered her background, he didn’t have the same insecurities she had. Sometimes it takes good friends – like the secondary characters Denny, Tim, May and Jude – to help someone see clearly. On occasion, Ashley needed a little help. But that’s just part of the fun.

EL: And believe me, readers, Murphy’s Law is FUN. I love everything that Lori writes; Murphy’s Law has a special place on my To Be RE-read Pile! (Oops, this is supposed to be an interview, not a rave.) Ahem. In Murphy's Law – and in fact, in almost all your books – you show the importance of family. But it’s not always a traditional family.

LORI: Family is what you make of it. Divorce, remarriage, and adoption are commonplace. Sometimes friends are closer and more important than filial family. Writing non-traditional family isn’t a conscious decision on my part, but somehow it often plays a role in my stories. My main characters always put children first, because my heart tells me that’s how it should be. And my characters very much come from my heart.

EL: So... anymore “SBC Fighter” books?

LORI: Yes! The next single title will be Causing Havoc, out in February 07, and then Simon Says in August 07. Those books are from Berkley and other than the SBC fighting background, they’re unrelated to anything I’ve previously done. But I’m really excited about them.

EL: Any other releases?

LORI: October 06 has two anthologies – A Very Merry Christmas in trade, and a reissue of The Night Before Christmas in mass market, both from Kensington.

November is Santa Baby from St. Martins, featuring a new novella from Jennifer Crusie and reissued holiday novellas from Carly Phillips and me.

February 07 there’ll be reissues of The Buckhorn Brothers from Harlequin, with their original titles of Sawyer, Morgan, Gabe, & Jordan.

And... (drumroll please) I recently agreed to a two-book contract for a horror series I’m starting. It’ll be written under the name L.L. Foster, but that’s all I really know so far.

EL: WOW! Sister, you rock!
(drops interview and rushes off to mark her calendar)