I was an absolute bookworm, and read any kind of fiction I could get my hands on. I liked things with mythic elements - Alan Garner's books, Kevin Crossley Holland. Adventure and swashbuckling featured heavily as well.
Tell us a bit about your latest book, and what inspired you to write such a story.
My most recent paperback is an anthology I've been involved with. The idea for a collection of tales about gay immortals came from Nix Winter, and that started me off. I'd been meaning to do a dryad tale, and sitting under a yew tree a lot. It all went from there really.
How would you describe your creative process while writing this book? Was it stream-of-consciousness writing, or did you first write an outline?
I very seldom write outlines. I spend a while figuring out the characters and setting, and then I see where it goes. I have more fun that way.
Did your book require a lot of research?
A little bit of online hunting for details, but mostly I was drawing on things I know. I prefer to read around, collect random information and then use it for stories, rather than having an idea and researching it.
If you could have any vice without repercussions, what would it be?
I'd quite like to be able to smoke passively without it doing me or the smoker any harm at all! I developed a weakness for passive smoking while at college, my bloke smokes, and I'd much rather he could do that without any risks.
What is the funniest/most embarrassing/scariest story from one of your books signings or events?
Dealing with people I know in person who have read my erotica has caused some embarrassment, but I try not to let on!
If you could have been the servant to any famous person in history, who would that be and why?
Beethoven - love his music, and have a slightly masochistic weakness for grumpy older men.
What so you see for the future of publishing and ebooks?
Ebooks are on the rise, but I don't think they will ever fully replace paper. I think we'll see more print on demand, and an reduction of the influence big publishing houses have on the industry.
Which of your characters do you love/hate/fear/pity the most and why?
Love - Salamandra from www.itisacircle.com because she's cute and dangerous. Fear? Jade from Heaven and Hell because she's all the more psychotic parts of my own mind. Pity? Jack Hunking in The White Hare's Lament, because I really tortured him in that story. Hate...? I don't think I've written a character I hated. Some of them express things I hate, but that's slightly different.
Do you get along with your muse? What do you do to placate her when she refuses to inspire you?
My muses have always been actual people. If I'm not feeling inspired, I go talk to one of them (usually Tom) It's always worked so far.
Do you have another book in the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects for 2010?
I always have things in the pipeline. We have quite a rapid turnaround at www.loveyoudivine.com so things tend to come out not long after I've written them. If I'm doing short stories, that can make for a short journey between idea and publication. So, I don't know yet! I'm hoping to do some druidic non-fiction work, and perhaps someone can be persuaded to do www.hopelessvendetta.wordpress.com in book for - or maybe I'll self publish that one.
Have you ever experience weird cravings while you write? If so, what kind?
Writing erotica produces some very specific cravings. Otherwise, I like my coffee fixes, but that's about it.
What is the worst, best, most embarrassing or funniest situation your writing career has put you in?
The best moment so far was being in the Stirring up a Storm anthology from Thunder's Mouth Press, because it also featured a story by Margaret Atwood and I'm a huge fan of her work. I was very proud of that one.
Where can readers find you on the web?
aside from the above, www.brynneth.org.uk is the centre of activity, www.twitter.com/Brynneth_Nimue http://groups.yahoo.com/brynsbookgroup and http://groups.yahoo.com/copperage
Death and The Immortal excerpt
Turning the last corner towards home, William stopped in his tracks and gaped. The once majestic yew tree dominating his corner of the village green had been felled in his absence. There had been no warning before he went on holiday and no chance to protest. It shouldn’t be so easy to slaughter a giant. A couple of youthful workmen in council uniforms stripped off side branches, bantering with each other. If I had been here... It took the middle aged man some moments to compose his thoughts.
Aghast at the carnage, he approached them. “Why have you done this?”
“It was dangerous, wasn’t it,” one of the young men said, with a disinterested shrug. “Going rotten.”
“It was ancient, and beautiful,” he protested. He could hardly bear to look at the severed stump, or the denuded trunk lying nearby. William had loved the tree through a decade spent living in its shadow. The giant had dwarfed his cottage, shading it all year round. He thought of it as a friend. Bereft by the destruction, he headed for his gate. Too much the eccentric outsider to make friends here, the yew had been his only reliable comfort and companion. Its violent demise grieved him and he snuffled back tears.
Wrapped in his thoughts he did not notice the figure on his doorstep until almost treading on an unexpected limb. The sight of bare feet snapped him out of his sorrows. He took in the uninvited presence. Reddy-brown arms wrapped about the head, and dark green hair offered a strange contrast. As William halted, the defensive posture relaxed slightly. Vast, dark eyes rose to meet his gaze, deeper than he had known brown could be, and filled with sorrow. Beautiful. He realised the figure was dressed only in sacking, most of his skin exposed. The sight of that much lithe male flesh sent his heart racing. However, the man looked to be in trouble, so he ignored the rush of desire. “Can I help you?” William asked, genuinely concerned by this development.
“Would you give me a sanctuary in which I can die quietly?”
Stunned by the request, he could do nothing but gape. “Die?”
“A day or two at most. I would not have troubled you, but where else would I go? It’s so exposed here.”
“Do I know you?” William’s mind raced, skimming through memories of numerous brief flings and encounters. He felt sure he would have remembered that incredible skin colour and those devastating eyes.
“Yes William. Yes you do.” A melancholy smile touched the speaker’s face.
“Forgive me; I don’t remember your name.” That happened all too often. They blurred into each other and memory could not distinguish between them. How could I have forgotten you though?
“I have not told it you.”
Part of the Immortal Fire Anthology, available from http://www.amazon.com/Immortal-Fire-His-Kisses/dp/1600543723/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262183702&sr=1-16
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