My interview with Linzi Basset

I met Linzi Basset on Twitter and shorty after we friended each other on Facebook. Linzi has one of the biggest hearts I've come across, and is one of the best at supporting her fellow indie authors. She's level headed, yet has a wicked sense of humour hidden beneath the surface and very often has you really laughing out loud. Linzi has a passionate drive for what she wants to achieve, but it doesn't stop her from talking to all her fans whenever she get the chance. She's one of the nicest people I've met to date, and on more than one occasion we've chatted about all sorts of things, from being a writer, and the issues we face as being indie authors, to our personal lives ups and downs, and the laughs we get from our daily routines.
Linzi Basset is a business woman by day and an erotica author by night. She writes with a touch of mystery and suspense, and entwines it with an element of BDSM that's hot, sexy, intense and intimate. Linzi puts a lot of research and passion into writing her books, and also admits herself that she's a sucker for a happy ending. But, let's be fair, aren't we all?


Here is what Linzi Basset has to say...


Why did you decide you wanted to become a writer?
 
Why do I write? This is the question we always have to think about, isn’t it? For me, it boils down to what Vincent Van Gogh once expressed: “I would rather die of passion than of boredom.”
That's why I write. To express the deep well of passion that lives in my soul which is the part of me that I keep secreted away from my day to day existence. It's a part of me that had been suppressed for a long time primarily due to a very conservative upbringing.  It was part of my familial and cultural heritage and what was expected of me.
Now, I've reached a point in my life where I’ve been able to liberate myself and share my passion with others - blossoming out of what once was the genesis of my own confined existence. Passion is what drives my creativity. Passion is what allows me to 'see' and express my own sensuality through the medium of the written word; to be able to draw from that deep well to define the beauty of eroticism and all that it encompasses. I want to share what I feel with others.
Isn’t it a universal truth that it is our singular experiences and our passion, for whatever thing or things that it may be, that molds us all into the individuals that we become? Whether it's hidden in the depths of our soul or exposed for all to see?
    
What was the thing that drove you the most to do so?
 
I’ve always said that I wanted to write, but never really tried. It was my Dad that pushed me to pick up the pen…yes, I was one of many, who started writing before computers landed in South Africa first. Now, It’s something I have to do to feed the passions of my soul. I come alive within every story. When I write, I become the character. I live each and every scene.  
 
How long have you been writing?
 
I began creative writing in school. My first two books were published in South Africa in the early 1990’s. After that, life interfered and I didn’t write again until 2014, as a self-publishing author on Amazon.
    
Why did you pick the genre/s that you have?
 
I’m a very passionate person. It’s what drives and motivates most every decision I make in life. Passion is a spark that ignites the fuel that feeds the fire in an erotic novel. I live inside each book that I write. It is, in part, my own sensuality that I explore and the demons that I expunge that inhabit the pages of my stories.
Of course, let’s not forget that the essence of my stories is suspense. I started as a writer of eroticism but am evolving more and more toward suspenseful thrillers with erotica as a subtext in the club series BDSM as the secondary genre.
At this stage, I’m exploring a wider sphere of genres and don’t particularly want to limit myself to only one. I write erotica, I write BDSM, I write romance, I write suspense, I write thrillers and lo and behold … hold onto your hat…I also write Dragon Shifter books. I created that one book as a ‘gift’ to my mother, who kept asking for more stories and along the way, it seems to have found favour with many fans. Now, everyone is asking for the next one.
And then, there’s poetry. I have always had a passion for it. It’s one place where I can express any feeling and be able to reach someone out there.
 
Who is your favourite character, and why?
 
In my own stories? It has to be Ryder Whitmore from, His Forever Sub. He came from an abused background and although it was very difficult to write those scenes, the intense emotions and how he suffered trying to overcome his demons, made him a very interesting character to write.
From other writers? It has to be the Mallories from Johanna Lindsey. Love their humor.
 
Do you have any particular quirks when writing?
 
For those who were curious to know if I wrote in the nude … naw, I don’t see how that would help the artistic juices flow…hehehe. I don’t really have any specific ritual although I do talk to myself, but then again, show me a writer that doesn’t. Right?
 
What does your family think of your work?
 
My family is my greatest supporter. My mom is in her seventies and the first one to read a new book that’s released and the one pushing for the next one even more so than my fans.
 
Do you belong to any writing groups? And if so what do you think are the pros and cons?
 
I’ve been part of the Mr. Blackthorne Wicked Pen Writers since June last year. I’ve not been that active with them lately, purely because of time constraints, but I still support and am featured on Mr. B’s website.
Pros and cons...hmm. I think that everyone is mostly very supportive of one another. Within the private DM, they share their challenges and successes.
Let’s face it. Being a writer is a lonely vocation apart from keeping your own company and the characters that you create. It’s very easy to withdraw into yourself and just write and forget that there’s a world that exists outside. Being part of a writer’s group helps to keep you grounded by listening to others and sharing your thoughts and concerns.
Cons … let’s not go there …
 
How do you deal with writer’s block?
 
I’ve been lucky -  touching a major a amount of wood here because I’ve never yet experienced writer’s block. There was a period, after my father passed away in October last year, when I battled to get back into writing, but that had more to do with emotional issues than it did getting my artistic mojo flowing.
 
What would you say is the most difficult part of writing?
 
Let me start by saying this - it may come as a surprise to many people, but English isn’t my first language. When I first started writing again a few years ago, I struggled with the enormous versatility of American English. All my stories are American-based, so I obviously needed to ensure that they would appeal to Americans. It was a massive struggle at first until I found an American editor that “Americanized” my writing!
There may be writers out there who are going to read this and say it’s a bit difficult to believe, but other than keeping up with the demand from readers for new work, there isn’t a part of writing, that I can think of, that I find difficult. I have developed enormously over the past 2 years as a writer and continue to challenge myself to write well. From setting the rough outline to writing the very first and very last sentence. I love the review and editing process, purely because that’s when I learn and develop my writing.
Outside of the creative process, it can be arguably said that there are many difficulties that can and do arise when it comes to getting published. That is where one must learn to cope with the peculiarities that inhabit the world of publishing.
 
What do you enjoy the most about writing?
 
Again, I enjoy the challenge to write well. To write a good story and make the emotional content and depth of my characters feel authentic.  I enjoy the responses from my readers; how they become drawn into the stories, so much so, that they can’t wait for the next one. Mostly, I enjoy creating something special, unique and satisfying to fulfill my own expectation of what I set out to do when I type, Chapter One.
 
Where do you find your inspiration?
 
Life, in all of its existential forms and wonders. All one needs to do is reach out and embrace it. It’s an enormous treasure trove of inspiration, isn’t it? It teems with emotions, passions, hate, laughter, tears, regrets, inner demons and so much more. One is only limited by one’s own imagination.

Are your characters based on anyone you know?
 
As a writer I always start with my own experiences and knowledge and then I start expanding to others or events in and around your life.
 I draw a lot from within myself when I write or create most of the female characters. As for the others, they evolve around the imaginary circle I create within my mind during the time I write the stories. The male characters are all Alpha males. What is challenging, is to give the male character a balance within himself; to be more than just a dominant persona, but to be caring and tender at the same time.
 I believe that telling stories in my own voice, driven by my own passion is what motivates me and that is the very essence that gets insinuated into each and every one of my stories. It's a distillation of who and what inhabits my being.  I truly experience and live each and every scene. I feel every touch, every kiss, every harsh word uttered and that to me, is the key. I write from the inside out. My stories are me. I live them. I couldn’t imagine writing a story looking in from the outside to try to describe something that I cannot see or feel. When I feel myself laboring unnecessarily to write a scene that I can’t connect to, I know it’s going to come out wrong. My mentor always tells me to leave some things to the reader's imagination, because I become so involved with describing what I see and feel.
 
What do you do in your spare time to relax?
 
Spare time?  Relax?
Hahaha…a full time job which takes up 8 - 10 hours of my day, writing that takes up another 6 -8 hours at night…I have to sleep I’ve been told…so at this stage…not a luxury I have. But I live in hope…
 
What do you like to read?
 
I like a versatile genre and read thrillers, suspense, historical, romance, erotica …  well I can keep going! I love John Grisham’s writing because he does it with such precision and style you can’t not help other than to admire it. And I a particular fondness for stories that revolve around legal issues. In the erotica genre, I have always admired Johanna Lindsey, who is a historical erotica writer. I have all her books and learned from her to build all aspects of life into my stories.
 
Who is your favourite author?
 
I said it above, John Grisham, and then there’s also Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Patricia Cornwell and Johanna Lindsey.
 
Where are your books available?
 
They are currently only available on Amazon.
 
What are you working on right now?
 
I’m currently working on Part 2 of the first book, Desperation: Colt’s Acquittal, in the Club Wicked Cove series. The second suspense BDSM club series I’m writing.
When I started this series, I had no intention of ending any of the books on a cliffhanger because I personally hate cliffhangers - but the pesky characters just had to have their way, hence, Part 2 of Book 1 ensued with Colt Fargo metamorphosing into the dark Mafia Boss, Don Damiano Vitale, who became the best ruler any crime family has ever had.
In this story Ceejay realized that in the darkness that inhabited Damiano’s soul dwelt the disturbed consciousness of a man that heretofore remained hidden and now horrified her. No one truly understood Damiano’s demons and to what extent his actions reflected the beast who he had become. Did Ceejay? Did she ever want to know what drove him, and if so, at what personal cost? It might be something she wished she’d never seen.
 
What is your ultimate goal?
 
My goal has always been to become a full time writer, which is now within my grasp. I’ve resigned my job and will be writing full time beginning in August of this year. An exciting and daunting prospect, for sure, but I’m looking forward to the new challenges ahead of me.
My new goal is to be the best author that I can possibly be and continue to write stories that find favour with readers.
 
Do you have a favourite film? And if so what is it?
 
Ahem … refer to the above point … hehe … I can’t remember when last I actually watched a movie, but my all-time favorite, and don’t anyone dare laugh, is the animated movie, Beauty and the Beast.
 

Here is where you can find Linzi Basset


Twitter:  @LinziBasset

Facebook: www.facebook.com/people/Linz-Basset

Website: www.linzibassetauthor.com

Amazon Author Page:  www.amazon.com/author/linzibasset

Goodreads: [email protected]


I'd like to take this last moment to thank Linzi Basset for being a good sport and taking part in my interview process. I hope you'll take the time to follow Linzi on Twitter and Facebook and drop her a line, she'll be pleased to hear from you. While you're at it why not stop in on Amazon and pick up one or two of Linzi's books for a hot and steamy night in? You won't be disappointed.
Once again, thank you Linzi Basset.

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