Thank you, Pauline, for inviting me here today, and for asking why I wrote Prophecy.
The seed for Prophecy was planted 30+ years ago while I was still in high school. (You all can stop counting now, you hear?) It started with, well, a different question. What would happen if aliens invaded during the school day? The seed of my answer germinated in my mind and began to grow.
The hero broke through the soil first, all blue-skinned and sexy with his white hair (not blond) ruffling in the breeze. A natural born military man, through and through. Then the heroine—a total Earth-girl—popped up next to him, her dark hair spilling over her shoulders. She turned out to be a perky nineteen-year old college student.
Maybe a touch too perky.
By the time I graduated college, the story wasn’t going anywhere, so I put away my blue-skinned hero and his bubbly heroine in favor of other stories. She needed more time to germinate anyway.
Many years, a husband, and three children later, I was working on a historical time travel that was 80% complete. This was it, my debut book, I could feel it…oops. Nope, that was morning sickness I felt. Children numbers 4 and 5. (Yes, twins.) My muse said, “Look, hon, I don’t change diapers, and I don’t wipe snotty noses.” And she split.
For twelve years I believed I’d never write again. Then one day, while I was sick in bed with a 102-degree temperature, my muse came back and chatted up a scene from my long-forgotten sci-fi romance. She threatened to up end a full watering can over my head if I didn’t go downstairs and type the scene of my hero and heroine’s bonding. That day I learned an important lesson: Don’t argue with your muse, she usually wins.
There have been a lot of ups and downs as I wrote Prophecy. At one point the writers’ nemesis, self-doubt, crept in and I almost shelved the project. Most of the SFRs I had found and read were erotica, and included threesomes. And that wasn’t what I was writing. Obviously, there was no market for my style in the genre. Then I picked up a copy of The Star King by Susan Grant, and BAM! Here was a SFR that was steamy yet not erotica, and there were only two people in the relationship. Just like my story. Yes! I could do this!
In hindsight, it’s easy to see that it wasn’t my heroine who needed three decades to mature, it was me. I wish I could tell you I found all my hand-written pages from the original story, but alas they are MIA. What has developed is so much better anyway.
It seems fitting that my debut book is a SFR. The genre has always been my favorite, and one I hope to write in for a very long time. Although, eventually I will finish that historical time travel.
About Prophecy
Release day: January 12, 2016 on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, iTunes
A woman who’s lost everything, a man betrayed by his own, but together their destiny is greater than ever imagined.
One normal day turns into a nightmare when Earth is attacked. Now ER nurse Alexandra Bock is imprisoned aboard an alien slave ship with no way out. She deems all aliens untrustworthy, including the handsome blue-skinned Matiran captain who shares her cell.
One night of betrayal leaves Senior Captain Gryf Helyg a prisoner of his enemies. Because of him, Earth’s indigenous people face extinction and his home world is threatened. But his plans for escape are complicated by his inexplicable draw to the Earth woman imprisoned with him.
One ancient prophecy holds the key to free Alexandra and Gryf’s war-ravaged worlds. Can two wounded souls who have lost everything learn to trust and forgive in order to fulfill the prophecy, and find a love that will last for eternity?
Available for special pre-order price on Amazon.
Prophecy has placed in the following contests: The Molly, On the Far Side, Dixie Kane, Pages from the Heart, and The Rebecca.
About Lea Kirk
Lea Kirk loves to transport her readers to other worlds with her romances of science fiction and time travel. Her fascination with science fiction began at six years old when her dad introduced her to the original Star Trek TV series. She fell in love with the show, and was even known to run through her parents’ house wearing the tunic top of her red knit pantsuit and her white go-go boots pretending to be Lieutenant Uhura. By nine years old she knew she wanted to be a writer, and in her teens she read her first romance and was hooked.
She lives in Northern California with her wonderful hubby of twenty-five years and their five kids (aka, the nerd herd). She’s also proud of her seven times great grandson. Apparently her stories will serve as the inspiration for James T. to join Star Fleet Academy. She learned this in the 1980’s when James sought out her counsel on where to find a pair of humpback whales.
Where to find out more about Lea Kirk
www.leakirk.com
https://twitter.com/LeaKirkWrites
https://www.facebook.com/LeaKirkAuthor
Thank you so much for stopping by to share you story! I’m so glad your muse stuck with you! Congrats on the upcoming release and so glad it’s SFR! So, peeps, what would you do if the Earth is suddenly attacked by aliens?
I love comments so much that I pick a favorite to receive my monthly AnaBanana gift basket ($25 value). Recipient is announced the first blog post of the new month.
Perilously yours,
Pauline