Author Interview: Cassandra Duffy
Your Name (as it appears on your books):
Cassandra Duffy
Your Blog or Author Website (no purchase links):
http://www.Cassandra_duffy.com
Your Twitter (if applicable)
http://www.twitter.com/SapphicPixie
How would you describe yourself?
With lots and lots of adjectives! Kidding. Geeky gamer girl, political junkie, former math wonk, no ones hero, and pocket dynamo dyke. I think the last one would be a good garage band name too: The Pocket Dynamo Dykes. I can see that on t-shirts.
How would you describe what you write?
Sexy-sweet-humor-action! I’m honestly in writing to have fun and hope to help others have fun in reading. I’m more known as a Steampunk author, but my most recent book is fairly traditional swords and sorcery romance. Even with the genre jumping, I still try to sneak in as much sex and humor as the story can take without turning into a pornographic pie fight.
What inspired you to start writing your first book?
A very ill-conceived vacation to Arizona. The Gunfighter and The Gear-head was my first novel. It takes place largely in a post apocalyptic Tombstone and is a product of how much I was daydreaming while wandering around the tourist attractions of one of the least interesting parts of the Arizona desert.
Do you prefer chocolate or vanilla?
Chocolate, really dark chocolate drizzled in even darker chocolate. Start at 90% cacao and move up from there.
What authors influence your writing?
I like to think my writing is influenced by a mix of Gertrude Stein, Christopher Moore, and Anais Nin. But I’m probably more a mix of Diablo Cody and Aaron Sorkin.
What one writing tip do you have for new authors?
Get a cat. Most of the really good advice for new writers is already better explained by the countless writers who came before me. All I can add is, get a cat, especially one who will sleep on your lap, preventing you from getting up to procrastinate about writing. I didn’t train mine to do this, but she’ll attack the shit out of my ankles whenever I try to step over her when she’s sleeping in front of my office door.
Did you self or traditionally publish, and why did you choose that route?
A little of both. I went the traditional route for a little while with an indie publishing house and free-lance columns, but recently I’ve been thinking more and more about the solo thing.
Do you have a blog, and how has it helped with your promotional efforts?
I do have a blog. It’s called Erotic Answers and I have no idea how it has helped with promotion efforts. It was originally created to warehouse old sex/relationship advice columns back when I was a columnist. Now I kinda use it for goofing around on.
What one thing are you OCD about, in general?
I guess if I had to pick one thing, I’d have to say my makeup. I spend a lot of time on it, derive a lot of artistic pleasure from it, and fairly often smudge it all over my much taller girlfriend’s shoulder, arm, and chest when I hug her. Then I immediately have to fix it. This cycle can happen several times a day.
What is the most creative way you have promoted any of your books?
I held a fan art and trivia contest to win signed copies of The Gunfighter and The Gear-head. The trivia winners were crazy accurate and I found out one of my readers is the artist for a webcomic series. She actually drew me into it after she won one of the signed copies. That contest was fun, because I ran it myself and got to learn how expensive it is to mail a book to Australia; not as bad as you might think.
What would you do differently if you had to start over?
There are definitely certain websites I wouldn’t go near in the first place if I knew then what I know now, but I’ll skip saying which ones. Eat more vegetables, I guess. Things have gone really well, so I can’t think of anything I’d want to change.
Where do you hope to see yourself in the next five years?
The only thing I can say I really, really want in the next five years is to marry my longtime girlfriend. Of course, there are a few laws that’ll need to change for that to work, or we’ll have to move to Canada or something. I’ll just have to figure out what the Southern California equivalent is in Canada.
What are the first three rules you would make if you took over the world?
For one, people really need to learn math and science. I think that alone would solve a lot of problems. Make everyone carry around their favorite book so whenever people meet they’ll have something to talk about. I don’t know what to do with the last one. Maybe tell the Japanese to stop selling used schoolgirl underwear in vending machines. Oh, shit, world peace… Is it too late to change one?
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