And if you simply can't get enough JAL trivia (ha!), below those questions you can find links to various interviews with me.

Without further ado, here are the contest questions, along with my answers. You can either click to the question of your choice or scroll down and read them all at your leisure. Hope you enjoy them!

1. How old are you?
   
   
2. Is it true that you did five backflips were you saw that
   cute cover for your book the Runaway Duke?
   
   
3. When does a historical romance writer have time for romance?
   
   
4. What do you remember about your first kiss?
   
   
5. Who do you think is hot?
   
   
6. How does your family feel about you writing Historical romances? Especially the love scenes?
   
   
7. Do you ever write into your stories characters based on people you have known (without naming names) such as the ornery boy in your 4th grade class or the little girl down the street you played with?
   
   
8. What time is it in your heart, and what time is it in your mind?
   
   
9. What inspired you to choose to write a Regency as your first book?
   
   
10. What is a typical day in the life of Julie Anne Long like?
    
    
11. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
    
    
12. Where do you write?
    
    
13. If you could dine with any author dead or alive, whom would it be and why?
    
    
14. Do you plan to write only historicals or will you venture into other genres?
    
    
15. How long does it take you to write a book?
    
    
16. What great thoughts of inspiration and sage advice would you give to high school students in this day and age?
    
    
17. Of all of the heroines you have written about, which one would you like to trade places with and why?
    
    
18. What are your favorite books, romance and non-romance?
    
    
19. What advice would you give aspiring writers?

How old are you? ~Rose Birchall, St. Clair Shores, MI

Why, I'm 5' 8"! Thanks for asking, Rose.

Next question...


Is it true that you did five backflips were you saw that cute cover for your book the Runaway Duke? ~Danielle DeBuono, Wheaton, IL

Well, that's only part of the story, Danielle. The five backflips were followed by a triple sow cow, after which I hovered "Matrix"-like in mid-air for an ecstatic moment before flapping my arms rapidly to ensure a safe and graceful landing, upon which I did an arabesque—

Oh, sorry. Got carried away there.

Isn't it a wonderful cover? Warner has a very talented art department. I feel very fortunate!

When does a historical romance writer have time for romance?~Kris Coffey, San Francisco, California

Ah, you see—that's where the word "historical" comes in. Yes, it's absolutely true: my schedule is insane these days, and some things have been, um, sacrificed. I do have a wish list, however—see the "Who do you think is hot?" question below. If you all buy my books, I might actually make a living at this and have time for a love life again. Meanwhile, maybe I should have a telethon...

What do you remember about your first kiss? ~ Joanie Newman, West Virginia

I was about eight years old, and my friends Dana Salsedo and Timmy Coon (who is no doubt known as something more dignified now, like "Tim" or "Timothy," but he was definitely "Timmy" back then) and I were playing The Dating Game in my backyard. Dana and I were the bachelorettes, and Dana and I sat on the swings on the swingset while Timmy asked a series of incisive questions, such as "What's your favorite soda?" and "What's your favorite candy bar?" At last, Timmy decided I was the bachelorette for him (Was it my daring candy bar preference—5th Avenue? Who knows?), and we repaired to the garage for our "date." I had a quick impression of the smell of gasoline from the lawn mower, a row of shovels and rakes hanging on the wall—and then Timmy planted one on me, right on the lips. Ah, maybe that's why my love life has featured so many, er...rakes, as it were, over the years. (Oh, stop it. I can hear you groaning from here).

I think my first real kiss happened in the cab of a pale blue Chevy pickup truck. Unfortunately, I can't reveal the details here. :)

Who do you think is hot?

I loved this question. That's all it said: "Who do you think is hot?" Just like that. A cryptic email without a signature. It cracked me up. I figured the lack of parameters gave me carte blanche to interpret the question however I pleased, so I decided to answer it with a list of —well, men, of course. Living, dead, real and fictional, all hot for a combination of reasons—looks, brains, talent, integrity. Totally off the top of my head (it's a random list, and it may expand or contract with time), here are some hot ones (you're probably going to laugh at some of them):

How does your family feel about you writing historical romances? Especially the love scenes? ~ Danielle DeBuono, Wheaton, Illinois

Well, maybe it's because I'm from the San Francisco Bay Area (where we're not exactly known for our, er, reticence), or maybe it's because my mom had historical romances in the house for almost as long as I can remember, but no one in my family is the least bit bothered by it. No one I know, as a matter of fact, is the least bit bothered by it. I was, in fact, encouraged to write a romance. And everyone wants to put their two cents in regarding the love scenes. I don't know if that makes me fortunate or not.

Do you ever write into your stories characters based on people you have known (without naming names) such as the ornery boy in your 4th grade class or the little girl down the street you played with? ~ Jackie Wisherd, La Mesa, California

You know, I think every writer bases their characters, consciously or unconsciously, on people they know—and on themselves. Because your writing voice is inevitably determined by how you experience and interpret life—the events and people around you, the things you see and feel. I know that aspects of myself are in every single character in The Runaway Duke (well, maybe not Edelston). The feeling of being a fish out of water, the longing to be understood, the unrequited love, the requited love, the facing up to responsibility, the longing to run away from it—I've grappled with all of that, and it's all there.

What time is it in your heart, and what time is it in your mind? ~Mary Ann Jones Orlando, Florida

I'm glad you asked, Mary Ann. It's always 4:30 p.m. in both my heart and mind.

What inspired you to choose to write a Regency as your first book? ~Daniela Brüggemann, Duisburg Germany

That's Jane Austen's fault. And to some extent, Amanda Quick's.

(Note: It's not a typo—the next five questions were indeed asked by Melissa Lawson of New London, Connecticut. She wins the prize for sending the most questions—so I sent her some bookmarks and a tiny vintage locket. Thanks, Melissa!)

What is a typical day in the life of Julie Anne Long like? ~Melissa Lawson, New London, Connecticut

Well, currently, it goes a little like this: My alarm goes off and I slap at it resentfully, and then I lay there for a while in paralyzed disbelief that it's already morning. I open my eyes; there's usually a cat crouching on my chest in a spinx-shape, gazing at me ardently, and I roll over and tip him off, gently. I fumble for my glasses, get resignedly out of bed, stick the contacs in, make some tea, stagger off to work (yep, I still have a "job"), work all day, then stagger home and write. And work on my website. And other promotional-type things. And answer emails and phone calls from friends and family and editors, and pay bills etc., and so on. Sometimes I jump on my mini trampoline while I watch repeats of The Simpson's. In short, it's a blindingly glamorous life. LOL. (You don't get rich overnight when you're a first-time author—it's a building process).

That's a typical day for the past six months or so, anyway. For the past six months or so, I've been almost...surreally, insanely busy with two deadlines for two books and first-time author start-up things (like websites and promotion and conferences) and my job and all the other details of life. But in a way, it's exhilerating, too: I think the more you do, the more you can do, and it's fun to challenge yourself to accomplish all of it. (This was written in May 2004; I think I'll revisit this question at the same time next year to see if anything has changed).

What do you like to do do when you're not writing?
~Melissa Lawson, New London, Connecticut

Hmmm...on a typical weekend when there's time (ha!), I enjoy the things that beautiful Northern California and the Bay Area have to offer: the San Francisco ballet, concerts, fantastic food, hiking, movies (I look forward to the yearly animation festival—I confess that I love cartoons, but not all of them), long meandering conversations with friends, discovering odd or beautiful little things in in antique stores (OK, they're more like "junk stores") and thrift stores and bookstores, choosing random things to attend out of "the pink section" (the entertainment section of The Sunday San Francisco Chronicle), like Vietnamese underwater puppet shows or lectures on backyard bugs... Shoot, even going to Target can be an adventure, if you're with the right person.

Where do you write? ~Melissa Lawson, New London, Connecticut

Everywhere. Mostly at my desk at home. But I also write on the bus (I live in a big city; we take trains and buses everywhere), in waiting rooms, in the park... And if thinking about plot counts as writing (I kind of like to think it does), then I write in the shower, too, and sometimes in staff meetings and in line at the grocery store. When you have a deadline, you seize opportunities to write as they arise, of necessity.

If you could dine with any author dead or alive, whom would it be and why? ~Melissa Lawson, New London, Connecticut

Dine with an author?? Why on earth would anyone want to dine with an author?? We're a wretched bunch: giddy one moment ("I got a good review!") wracked with insecurity the next ("What if I can never write another decent book again??"), etc. You have to be half-crazy to make writing your life's work. Just kidding -- mostly! Half my friends these days are authors, and I love them all. I think, however... I think I'd have to choose Jane Austen. From her letters, she sounds exactly like someone I'd love to have in my circle of friends: caustically witty, unnervingly observant, loyal and passionate and intelligent and kind. Who wouldn't want to have dinner with someone like that?

Do you plan to write only historicals or will you venture into other genres? ~Melissa Lawson, New London, Connecticut

I love historicals—and I have ideas for books set in periods other than the Regency—but I'd love to write contemporaries, too—I have quite a few ideas. I also love writing essays and articles. Given enough time, I'd probably be a writing machine.

How long does it take you to write a book? ~Melissa Lawson, New London, Connecticut

Well, I wrote The Runaway Duke over the span of about a year and a half—but I didn't work on it every day, and I put it aside for several months during that period, too (I didn't have a deadline). My second book, To Love a Thief (Warner Forever, April 2005) was mostly written during an approximately four and a half month period, and I worked on it every day, feverishly, on the bus on the way to work, at home at night, whenever and wherever I could steal time. I think it definitely helps to plot a book in advance (for me, anyway), but how long it takes to write a book probably depends on the circumstances of your life at any given time—and the deadlines involved.

I am a high school mathematics teacher in a very low income and transient population school. What great thoughts of inspiration and sage advice would you give to high school students in this day and age? ~Christine Womack

I'm flattered and humbled that you think I might have anything sage to say! Because, frankly, I'm still figuring life out myself; to be alive and human, I think, is to be constantly attempting to figure life out and learning from the things that life throws your way.

But I will say this: no matter what happens to you in high school, and no matter how you identify yourself or how others identify you (perhaps it's a word, like geek, jock, stoner, etc.)—high school absolutely isn't the sum total of your life, even though it may feel that way at the time (I remember that feeling). Life really begins after high school. With energy and imagination and persistence, you can reinvent yourself again and again. Life is a process of becoming. It takes some of us longer than others to reach our dreams, because life might want you to take what feels like a rather indirect route to your dreams, but if you keep working, you really can make it happen—and discover new dreams along the way. (God, I sound like I'm going to burst into a chorus of "Fame.") Trust me: I did a lot of different things before I became a published author, and all of those things seemed somehow necessary to lead me here. And my beginnings were pretty darn humble and my route to my dream erratic and occasionally turbulent. Hope that helps a little!

Of all of the heroines you have written about, which one would you like to trade places with and why? ~Joy Isley, Mesa, Arizona

So far I've only written about two heroines...and there are moments in the books where I'm very glad I'm not either of them (for instance, when Rebecca Tremaine in The Runaway Duke finds herself being manhandled by a highwayman), and other moments where...well, picture this: you're alone with a gorgeous man—Connor Riordan from The Runaway Duke—in an isolated hunting box; there's a crackling fire; the two of you have been fighting against your desire for each other for days...

Say no more, right??

What are your favorite books, romance and non-romance?
~ Alan Berkman, Modesto, California

This was another thought-provoking question...what constitutes a "favorite" book? I've loved every moment I spent with certain books—but I would never pick them up again, possibly because even though they may have been beautiful or riveting, I found them too...wrenching, or too exhausting, or too something, to revisit. So I decided to answer this question by listing books I've happily read over (and sometimes over and over) again through the years. At the risk of leaving off books I love, I decided to write this list off the top of my head. In no particular order:

The Once and Future King (T.H. White)
Gone With the Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
Sense and Sensibility (Jane again)
Emma (and again)
Persuasion (guess who?)
High Fidelity (Nick Hornby)
Lady Chatterley's Lover (D.H. Lawrence)
Bridget Jones' Diary (Helen Fielding)
London (Edward Rutherford)
The Age of Innocence (Edith Wharton)
The Deverry books by Katherine Kerr
Diana Gabaldon's books
The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
Through the Looking Glass (Lewis Carroll)
Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman (Richard Feynman)
Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
Cherie (Colette)
The Little House books (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Operating Instructions (Anne Lamott)
Sleeping in Flame (Jonathan Carroll)
All the Harry Potter books (J.K. Rowling)
A Room with a View (E.M. Forster)

The problem with making lists is that you always leave off millions of things you'd like to include... I may add to this list as time goes by.

What advice would you give aspiring writers?~ Doreen De Salvo, San Francisco, California

Write! Quit aspiring to write, and actually write! If you really want to write, nothing can or will stop you. No matter how busy or beleaguered you are, you can carve time out of your day or week to write. Write, and then share your writing with other writers. And read—across all genres. Good writing in any genre can inform romance writing as well, and help you keep your voice and craft sharp and fresh.