I’m super excited to welcome author Nancy J. Cohen to the blog today for our first author interview. Nancy previously published futuristic romances under the name Nancy Cane and more recently, penned the long running Bad Hair Day Mysteries. Nancy’s latest book release is Silver Serenade, a futuristic romance available from The Wild Rose Press.
Now, on to the interview…
CHARLIE: Nancy, can you tell us a little about the new book and what inspired it?
NANCY: I was intrigued by the notion of what would happen if my main characters shared the same goal but for different reasons. In Silver Serenade, Silver and Jace are both hunting the same villain, Tyrone Bluth, the leader of Tyrone’s Marauders. These space pirates prey on innocent colonists and destroy settlements. Framed for murder on his home world, Jace needs Tyrone Bluth alive to prove his innocence. Silver, an assassin for S.I.N. (Security Integrated Network) means to kill Bluth who destroyed her family. They team up to catch the bad guy, but what will happen when they succeed? Which one will make a sacrifice to help the other? I just had to write their story to find out how it ends.
CHARLIE: Whether you’re writing about the future and far off worlds or contemporary South Florida, you always do an incredible job of creating a richly realized world for readers to dive into. What fun or interesting world elements can readers look forward to in Silver Serenade?
NANCY: The action begins on the arid planet of Al’ron, a watering hole for space travelers not welcome elsewhere. Silver takes a shot at Bluth but Jace knocks her aim off. Bluth’s henchmen go after them. On the run, Silver and Jace disguise themselves to dock at a space station for repairs. When they run into trouble and can’t access their ship, they hire on as crew for a freighter that turns out to have an unexpected cargo. From here they jump to future Earth with aircars, turbo scooters, and flying trains. Their adventures continue on the mysterious planet of Stacktown which is rumored to be haunted, and then on to Elusia, home planet of Jace’s alien valet. Each place comes alive with sensory descriptions, foods common to the culture, smells and sounds, and other details that give them a futuristic feel. Silver Serenade is a fast-paced romantic adventure set on other worlds.
CHARLIE: What do you enjoy most about writing futuristic romance in comparison to other genres?
NANCY: Futuristics give me the freedom to write anything I want. There’s no limit to my imagination, unlike mysteries that are grounded in reality.
CHARLIE: Should we expect to see more futuristic romances from you in the near future?
NANCY: I have some sequels in mind but right now I’m working on a paranormal romance series that takes place on modern day Earth. It’s based on Norse mythology and includes ancient prophesies, women with special powers, and warriors from outer space. Once that’s done, I can return to Silver’s universe.
CHARLIE: I got my copy of Silver Serenade as an e-book directly from The Wild Rose Press website, in a process that was easy and pain free. Instant gratification! Can you tell us if there are other ways to get Silver Serenade and your earlier Light-Years Trilogy?
NANCY: You can order a print version of Silver Serenade at The Wild Rose Press: here, plus the major online bookstores like Amazon have digital and print editions.
As for the Light-Years Trilogy (Circle of Light, Moonlight Rhapsody, Starlight Child): Order the print version directly from iUniverse: here.
For digital copies, go to Belgrave House: here.
Or again, try the major online retailers.
CHARLIE: Just for fun, if you could be any character from Star Trek who would you be?
NANCY: I’d either be Dr. Beverly Crusher (is that right?) in The Next Generation or Deanna Troy. She gets to marry Riker.
CHARLIE: Thanks, Nancy, for visiting the blog!
NANCY: Thank you so much for inviting me. Live long and prosper!
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SMART GIRLS, now’s your chance to ask Nancy a few questions. Set a course for the comments and…engage!
You can also connect with Nancy and find out more about her and her books here…
Website: http://nancyjcohen.com
Blog: http://nancyjcohen.wordpress.com
Facebook: http://bit.ly/c3YchC
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/nancyjcohen
Smart Girls love SciFi 
Thanks, Charlie, for inviting me to visit your site!
Is it difficult writing between genres, such as paranormal and contemporary? What advice would you offer to writers thinking about trying this?
My pleasure, Nancy! I’m glad you could make it to the blog before the big RWA Nationals convention. Will you be participating at the Literacy Book Signing there? And how long have you had this crush on Riker? 😉
Hi Nancy,
“Norse mythology and includes ancient prophesies, women with special powers, and warriors from outer space” Wow!
How do you come up with your ideas?
How do you keep your various genres from visiting each other. What would happen if Silver had a bad hair day?
Great interview. Silver Serenade sounds terrific! Congratulations.
Nancy, I love mystery and suspense and am intrigued by the witty idea of ‘The Bad Hair Day’ mysteries. Can you tell me more about that series?
Nancy, Silver Serenade sounds so fabulous and I love the title! I love the idea of the main characters having the same goal and wanting different outcomes – talk about conflict!
Great interview. I enjoy your mysteries, Nancy, and I love futuristics as well. And you obviously have great taste. Who wouldn’t want to marry Riker?
Great interview. Have you ever considered writing YA or middle grade fiction? I have a 9 year old who loves futuristic stories- without the romance- and they are very hard to find .
I already have Silver Serenade in my TBR pile. Now, I’m doubly glad I do! Great interview!
Maria: I’d recommend establishing yourself in one genre first. I’d written five futuristics and ten mysteries before jumping over to paranormal romance to try something different. I wanted to stretch my wings a bit and it’s been glorious although I still have to find a publisher for that work. But if you’re starting out, try to build a name in one genre first.
Charlie, I am going to Nationals but I’m not signing in the literacyevent since I had just ordered my books and they hadn’t arrived when I registered. Unlike other pubs who donate your books, with epubs you have to buy your own and that gets expensive. But I’ll have some in my car trunk! Re Riker: All I can say is I have an autographed photo of him where I can see it from my desk. Val: Ideas are everywhere. The problem is having the time to write them all. Karin: Great idea. I should have one of my characters visit Marla’s salon. Actually, I do mention it in book one of my paranormal saga. More coming…..
Lena, the Bad Hair Day series features Marla Shore who owns the Cut ‘N Dye salon in a western suburb of South Florida. She solves crimes in between cutting and coloring her customer’s hair. Since I don’t like a static series, Marla changes and grows during the course of the series and develops a romantic attachment to Detective Dalton Vail. There’s humor, romance, and a bit of adventure, and you’ll be yearing to meet Marla and have her do your hair. Thanks, Donnell, for your kind comments. Gail, I do have preteen readers for my mysteries. My mystery fans range from 10 year olds to 85 year olds. They are clean, fun stories. If I wrote YA stories, they’d be straight fantasy, but I have enough to do right now! Lex, I hope you like Silver’s story. It was a blast to write. Great questions, everyone. Keep them coming! I love to read sci fi romance so am glad the epubs give us more variety than we find in brick and mortar stores.
Nancy,
I’m impressed by your endless supply of ideas for writing!
I have a friend signing on with an e publisher. Do you have any advice for a newbie entering that realm?
Nancy, I love sci fi romance and yours sounds awesome. I will have to get it right away. Do you enjoy other sci fi like the new Warehouse 13 or Eureka?
Nothing’s as great as a break from “real” life while reading a futuristic romance. I so admire the world building, and it looks like great fun!
Nancy, thanks for generously sharing your knowledge. I’m fascinated by authors who write in multiple genres. I can’t imagine keeping so many different worlds straight, and you make it look easy.
Kirk or Picard?
Thanks Charlie for hosting a great interview and Thanks to Nancy for participating.
Nancy, I’d pick Deanna Troi also, but it’s because she’s a betazoid and an empath. And Dianne asked Kirk or Picard? I’d go for Picard. There’s just something delicious about a sexy, bald man. 🙂
Thanks for visiting! And I agree, on Picard. Sci-fi does great sexy bald men. Picard, Teal’c from SG1, Riddick from Pitch Black and Chronicles…
Mary, tell your friend that marketing online is the key. She should get into FB and Twitter and have a webpage and blog, and comment on other people’s sites. Getting noticed is the idea. Jill, I love all the sci fi shows on TV: Stargate (when it was on), Dr. Who, Warehouse 13, Eureka, Smallville, etc. That’s about all I watch. Gillian, the world building will definitely sweep you away in a futuristic. That’s why I like reading and writing them. Ruth, I write one book at a time. That’s how I keep them straight in my head. Dianne, hmm. That’s a hard choice. Kirk is a hunk but a love ’em and leave ’em type of guy. Picard is deep and cerebral and more mature. Can I go for Spock like Uhura in the recent film? Thanks for your great comments, everyone. I enjoyed being here. Live long and prosper!
Great interview, Charlie! Thanks for sharing such a fun guest with your loyal readers 😉
Thanks, Ava! I’m looking forward to more writer’s journey and cycling reports from you. 😉
Hi Ava. Thank you for stopping by!
Fabulous interview! I loved the Star Trek question at the end. LOL
Nancy, your ideas and world sound original and fascinating and the Nors paranormal sounds like something I would love. 🙂
If you ever decide to write a Viking story, I want in on the beta read! My one stab at historical was a Viking time travel short story. Very much deepened my admiration for you historical authors.
I’m hoping to find a home for my paranormal series based on Norse mythology. Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy Silver Serenade. Keep on Trekkin’! Now tell me which parody you liked better: Spaceballs or Galaxy Quest?
I’ve always been a fan of Norse mythology too. But I love everything you write, Nancy. LOL. I’ve just started Silver Serenede and it is amazing!
For parody, I vote Galaxy Quest. I’m sure that has something to do with my choice of Star Trek over Star Wars. They are both great, but I’ll always be a Trekie.
Thanks everyone for the great discussion and thanks to Nancy for being so generous with your time.
Oh my God Nancy, did you write as Nancy Cane? I think I have that book! It was one of the ones who turned me on to the idea of time travel. That’s amazing!!!!
Love your choices, Nancy! I’ve loved sci-fi from way back in high school and absolutely love the combination of romance and sci-fi!
Best of luck with your new release!!!
Yes, Mary, you didn’t know that my alter ego used to be Nancy Cane? I wrote four futuristics for Dorchester under that pseudonym. The first three books, my Light-Years Trilogy, are now available in ebook format under my real name from http://www.belgravehouse.com/bookstore/
I updated them a bit as I proofread through the docs.
Galaxy Quest is my favorite, but I really like the romance in Spaceballs between the princess and Lone Starr.
I meant Galaxy Quest is my favorite movie compared to Spaceballs, but the latter has a better romance. Anyone here a Stargate fan? I loved SG-1 and have all ten seasons. Also have SG-Atlantis. I don’t care for the characters on SG-Universe but I watch it anyway.
I love Stargate in all its iterations, from the original movie to SGU. I know what you mean about the characters in SGU. Hard to find a truly likeable character, but somehow the sum is better than its parts.
Am I going to get kicked off this blog if I say I didn’t like Spaceballs?
Of course not. But how could you not like a motorhome flying through space?
Glad I stopped by, enjoyed reading this. Voyager has my favorite Star Trek romance line – love B’Elanna and Tom.
Thanks for stopping by, Elizabeth. Voyager is often underrated.
I know I’m late to the party, but I have to say I’m amazed at how exciting Silver Serenade sounds! I’ve never read futuristic (I’m a die-hard historical romance kind of girl); this story is going on my TBR list! 🙂
Lis’Anne
Congrats on the new book! And I’ve always had a thing for Riker, too!
LisAnne, I hope we can convert you to reading futuristics! I’m a historical romance reader as well. Both genres transport you to another time and another place. I also like a book with a strong plot which can be found in these genres.
Great interview, Charlie (and Nancy!) Thanks for sharing. It’s great getting to know the fellow writers in CFRWA and learning about the different genres they write. 🙂
Kimberly
Great interview, Nancy! I’m thrilled to see all the coverage SILVER is getting. Thanks to Charlie for hosting this! ~Linnea
Thanks, Kimberly and Linnea, for dropping by. And people, Linnea gets the credit for my video of Silver Serenade.
I enjoyed the interview. Your story has me intrigued. I do love it when there’s conflict.
Paranormal romances are my favorite, but I love the SciFi channel. Star Trek, Battlestar Galatica, Caprica and Eureka are among my favorites. There’s others but we only have so much space here. lol
I wish you the best with your books.