Interview With Heidi Sutherlin

Heidi Sutherlin is a woman who wears many hats. In her own words, she’s a: “Blogger, Graphic Designer, Cover Artist, Crafty Wench and general Girl About the Universe.” And as if that weren’t enough, she’s also a writer – and what a writer she is! Her debut novel, Brothers In Betrayal, is a fast paced, action packed, romantic suspense that will keep you on the edge of your seat.


Elite Pacific Northwest software designer, Grace Mason is not the criminal that Special Agent Noah Jeffries expected to find.

Unaware that she's a suspected accomplice in an arms smuggling ring, Grace struggles to cope with the mysterious and disturbing changes in the company that she helped to build. When the danger begins to escalate she has no choice but to place her life in the hands of a man who threatens her control and makes her want what she promised herself she'd never take. Grace couldn't have known that falling for the sexy FBI agent would make her the focus of a dead man's vendetta.

Now Noah must uncover more than the details in a smuggling case as a betrayal from his past threatens the future of a woman he never meant to care for.

Get your copy now at Brazen Snake Books. It’s also available in e-book or print form at Amazon, Smashwords, and Barnes and Noble.

You’re a graphic artist by trade, what got you started writing?

I've been writing...well...always. My mom is a wonderful writer and always encouraged me to write. I was a part of and later the editor of my high school newspaper, and started college as a journalism major. I may have changed my major to Graphic Design, but never stopped writing. I didn't seriously think of writing a novel until just a couple of years ago, and the rest is, as they say, history.

What kinds of things do you write?

I write fiction novels. Romantic suspense, paranormal romance and category romance are the genres that I'm currently working in. However, I have a deep and enduring love of classic scifi, cyberpunk and steam punk and plan to take the plunge into worlds of my own sometime soon.

Where do you get your ideas?

They sort of germinate on their own. Some come in snippets from personal situations or social vignettes that I witness. Others come at me all at once. For instance, while sitting in the stands at our local rodeo last year the idea for A PICKUP MAN FOR KATE just washed over me. I sat there as the entire story unfolded for me. By the time the dust had settled and we were packing up our stuff, I had an entire, ready to sit down and write book. True, it's evolved a bit, but that's how it was born.

Do you ever get writer’s block? If so, how do you get past it?

I don't, actually. I don't sit down to write religiously every day. I'm a binge and purge writer. So, if the build up of words isn't ready, I just don't attempt to write any. I've learned that if I do, I simply cause myself more grief in the end. I do all of my plotting and character building in my head and when its ready I sit down and write it out in one go. So, putting it off only costs actually writing time, but the work is still being done as the stories evolve on their own.

How much reading do you typically do?

I read every day. Every day. I don't sleep a lot and tend to read a book a day, sometimes more, sometimes less. I'm a fast reader and use it as my comfort, my therapy, my sanity saver and my endless supply of happy endings.

Which is better, ebooks or print books?

Tough question. I choose print books with ebooks as a close second. Personally, I see them both working in harmony. Neither one really replaces the other, as they each have their own uses and virtues.

What are you reading right now?

I just finished Nora Roberts' CHASING FIRE. It was excellent, by the way. I'm just starting to read Lisa Jackson's LOST SOULS.

You own your own business, tell us a little about it.

My Creative Pursuits, is the culmination of years of not taking orders well. I decided to start my own boutique graphic design business and while I handle all types of graphic design projects from print business (brochures, logos, business cards, etc) to web sites, my focus is cover art for independently published authors. I wanted to provide professional cover art to the indie author community that would compete with the bigger publishing houses on a budget that is small publishing friendly. I've had the opportunity to work with some amazing authors and make quite a few friends in the bargain.

Aside from running your business, you also have a four-year-old (and a black lab) to wrangle. How do you work writing into the mix?

I only write at night. As a night person and a mommy, this makes the most sense. Luckily, for all involved this works out well.

What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to an aspiring author?

Don't judge your writing midstream. Just as in art, stopping to pass judgement on a project before it's done is not only foolish but needlessly damaging. Just keep writing until the end and then remember that all projects are inherently liquid in nature. Ever changeable, always malleable, they shift and alter to what they need to be easily. If you can't look at something favourably, then put it away until you can. In other words: It's all good.

What can we expect from you in the future? More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre?

With every genre I read I think to myself, "I want to write one of these." A dangerous thought, but it definitely implies that at some point I could write anything from regency, to sci fi, to the cyberpunk that I adore.

The near future, however holds the next book in the series I began with BROTHERS IN BETRAYAL, hopefully to be available this spring. I have five other books in process which include three romantic suspense, a category romance and a paranormal romance. So many words, so little time.

Is there anything else you’d like to say?

Only a very big thank you for having me, Carol. It's such an exciting time, the release of my first book as definitely held up to the hype. Thanks for helping me share it!

Thank you Heidi for agreeing to be my guinea pig first interview!

Look for Heidi on the net here:

Twitter: twitter.com/heidisutherlin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Heidi-Sutherlin-Author/234235414813
Blog: http://heidisutherlin.blogspot.com/