Q+A with Joey W. Hill (Vampire Queen)

Please welcome today's guest author, Joey W. Hill!  Joey is the author of the VAMPIRE QUEEN paranormal romance series.

Q+A with Joey W. Hill

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Joey:  I began writing in 5th grade and was penning all sorts of romances by middle school, both fantasy and contemporary. I’d pass scenes to friends during class and they’d write feedback on them. My first critics and editors! I still have a pencil-drawn map I created of one of my fantasy worlds, as well as a particularly enthusiastic note a friend wrote to me during class. She was sure my books would earn a MILLION dollars (lots of exclamation points). Nothing like the unrealistic zeal yet invaluable support of good friends (lol).

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Joey:  I was a big fantasy reader as a kid. C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia, Lloyd Alexander’s Taran Wanderer series and The Story of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Howard Pyle were some of my earliest favorite reads. Then I progressed to Stephen Donaldson (Thomas Covenant Chronicles), Marion Zimmer Bradley, Mercedes Lackey and Katherine Kurtz, to name a few. So I always had a passion for the fantasy genre, especially when a strong love story or romantic elements were involved. The first book I completed and published, Guardians of the Continuum, was what was called a “fantasy-romance” at that time (paranormal and urban romance hadn’t yet been “discovered” – at least by publishers!).

While it was my contemporary romances that established my career from there, when that landed me a contract with a NY publisher, they wanted a paranormal romance proposal. I automatically went toward vampires. I’d always wanted to explore the Dominant/submissive elements of the vampire-servant relationship, so the Vampire Queen series was born. The Daughters of Arianne series (mermaid/angels) and Arcane Shot series (witches/sorcerers) came on the heels of that, though the vampires have remained my most popular BDSM paranormal romance series to date.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

Joey:  I’d be Nightcrawler in the X-Men comics. A female version, because I really like being a girl (grin). The teleportation thing is awesome. It would make traveling way faster and easier. For one thing, my husband and I wouldn’t argue who should be behind the wheel (and who should try to direct things from the passenger seat). Plus, if I was ever in a scary situation, I could get myself and loved ones out of that situation in a blink – literally – since Nightcrawler can grab onto anyone near him and teleport them as well. Just as a side note, I really like the actor who played him in X-Men 2. He’s probably the main reason I think of that as my favorite paranormal character and desired supernatural talent.

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy the latest book in the Vampire Queen series.

Joey:  Lord Uthe, a member of the Vampire Council, is a “former” Templar Knight. However, that’s a lot like calling someone a former SEAL or a former Marine – if the calling is true, they never stop identifying with the code of that service. Uthe has always tried to honor the spirit of the Templar Rule, despite the politically volatile and highly sexual world of the vampires. Yet now the Fae Lord Keldwyn, who’s the liaison between the Fae Court and the Vampire Council, is not only challenging Uthe’s dominant nature, but his emotional isolation as well. In short, he’s being very distracting with all his long dark hair, Fae magic and not-so-subtle attempts to get Uthe into bed.

They end up pursuing a quest in the Fae world to honor a promise Uthe made centuries ago that could affect both their worlds. Of course, to me, that’s just window trapping drama--blah-blah-action-plot-blah. The best part of the story is exploring their relationship and how two apparently Dominant males will resolve all that erotic tension and emotional build-up!

Okay, I admit, it was pretty cool to integrate the Templar history into this story and figure out how being a Templar would have worked for a vampire knight. Then there’s the cross section of the Fae and vampire worlds and the different twists that can provide. But still… the hot and erotic male/male BDSM romance elements – that’s really what caught your attention, wasn’t it? If you were like “you had me at male/male, BDSM and paranormal”, then we’re all good, right?

Seriously, I hope you all like the sound of that. The great thing about the Vampire Queen series is that every book can take me in a fresh direction. I’ve had M/f, M/f/M and F/m protagonists, depending on the book. While I’ve had the pleasure of writing Male/male for other series, this will be my first M/M in this series (aside from some heavy m/m dynamics in the ménage a trois stories).

If you’ve never read any of my Vampire Queen series, you can read blurbs and excerpts here, as well as find out which books can standalone or need a prequel for full enjoyment. The Night’s Templar is a standalone, but I recommend reading at least a couple books in the series first so you have a basic familiarity with the Vampire Queen world. Free excerpt for The Night’s Templar is here.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

Joey:  I’d cast James Purefoy (Ironclad, Knight’s Tale, etc) as Uthe, and Pedro Pascal (Oberyn in Game of Thrones) as Keldwyn. James has done several knightly roles in movies and he does them very well, emanating the reserved demeanor, courage and intrinsic honor that Uthe has. And the Oberyn character in Game of Thrones had the grace and intensity that I see in Keldwyn. He might look a little older than the Fae does, since Fae are pretty much timeless, but when I’m “casting” I tend to look more for the spirit of the character than an exact match in looks. While someone in a photo might look exactly like I pictured my character, often when I hear them talk, see their body language or overall demeanor, it’s not a match at all. I’ve been building a Pinterest wall for this book, so you can see some of what I’m imagining there.

Thank you Joey for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

The Vampire Queen's Servant (Vampire Queen #1) by Joey W. Hill.

Lady Elyssa Yamato Amaterasu Wentworth is a centuries-old vampire who's been given a new servant - Jacob, a total alpha male unaccustomed to submitting to any woman's wishes. What really binds Jacob to her are not her sensual midnight hungers, but something far more provocative. It stirs her blood, renews her life, and awakens her soul like only true love can. The passion between Elyssa and Jacob yields something else unexpected - a shared history that reaches back through the centuries and is fated to challenge their destiny like nothing ever will again.

Release Date: July 2007
Genre: Paranormal Romance
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To learn more about Joey W. Hill and her books, please visit her website.  Have a question for Joey?  Ask away in the comment section below.  We love comments!