Joey: I was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, but I spent most of my growing up years until adulthood in Charlotte, North Carolina. Public school was difficult for me emotionally. I made exceptional grades, but I was unhappy and always anxious within the overwhelmingly institutionalized learning structure (Ivan Illich wrote an excellent book that reflected my viewpoint, which compared the institutionalized education system to the institutionalized prison system). Like a lot of teens, I had problems with depression, and my parents had me attend a series of sessions with a psychiatrist. He recommended early admission to a college that was a good environment for students who were self-motivated and didn’t need a lot of structure to achieve their goals. As a result, I attended Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, which also had a fifty-percent co-op work requirement, and graduated with a BS in Non-Profit Management. Due to their co-op requirement, I got the opportunity to try some unusual jobs half of each school year, like working on a goat farm in the Berkshires in Massachusetts!

Antioch was a bastion of radical thinking, a holdout from the climate of the Sixties (for those who have read GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM, Kingston was loosely based on it), and I learned many things there and on my co-ops. I learned how you can be close-minded when you think you aren’t. I learned labels are destructive, whether they are pasted on by the far left or far right, and so I found my preferred path to be that of the moderate, trying to always weigh issues with an open mind but then making up my own mind on them and not being afraid to take a stand. As a result, I’ve always been a registered Independent. From the age of thirteen up until about twenty-five, I was very actively involved with the animal welfare and animal rights movement.

While I’m not involved in organized activism any more, I continue to be a strong supporter of the rights of animals, and this is evident in my writing. However, that said, I believe in keeping a lid on "preaching" in a story. A story has a life of its own, and my job as the author is to be the best channel I can be for that story to tell itself, not to twist it to my own personal agenda. There are some stories I’ve written where my experiences or beliefs are reflected, but they are integrated into the natural way the story intended to go (the lab break in GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM which reveals Adam’s identity to his friends, the Wiccan ritual in IF WISHES WERE HORSES). It meshed with who the characters are, and was not included in the story to flail my readers with my belief system. While a story always reflects some of who an author is, each of us determines our own path. When authors actively and purposefully start using the story as a vehicle to convert people, they are misusing their muse, in my opinion.

I work full-time as the manager of a property owners' association that numbers about 1500+ properties and 1300 owners. We have two staff members, of which I am one. The other staff member handles architectural review of new construction and covenant restriction enforcement. I handle communications and office operations, and am the board's administrative person and policy interpreter. In other words, I do the database management, produce the newsletter, keep the Web site and cable channels up to date, coordinate communications between our board and the other entities on the island (the developer, the village, the club, etc.), manage the use of our Association Center building, etc. It's a unique little island, because we have so many high-powered players for such a little place and there's always an exhausting level of politics going on.

I am married to the most wonderful man in the world, my best friend. I worked a co-op at a humane society in Charlotte during my college years and my mother introduced us. He was working as a construction supervisor in her office. We dated for ten weeks, and he asked me to marry him. I always laugh because I don’t know why I said yes – I hadn’t even told him I loved him yet – but something in my heart said, "This is the right man." I was nineteen at the time. We had a two-year engagement, until I finished college, and then were married at a beautiful outdoor chapel in Ashboro, North Carolina. He is a quiet, complicated man, and our fifteen-year marriage has been the most important learning experience of my life. There is very little that is easy about marriage, but it is also the most rewarding relationship of a lifetime.

We decided not to have children. We currently have nine animals (two dogs, seven cats), and that seems very sufficient in terms of exercising our parental instincts. Pet care for nine, full-time jobs, a home to take care of, and various community commitments keep us so overwhelmed I usually fight for writing time (and lose about seventy-five percent of the time!). The picture above shows me with Morgan - Morgan and I are now a bit older ( *g* ) - she's about fifteen now.

Miranda, our youngest cat and Scott's baby - as if you can't tell by the picture!

Constance, our beagle-hound mix

Hannah, our Scottish Terrier - 14-15 years old and going strong!

Hobbies - I don’t really have time for hobbies – I don’t really have time to cultivate hobbies, because of my demanding full time job, and my husband and "children" take up a lot of my time. I do love to read in my favorite genres – erotic romance, fantasy, paranormal - but find little time to do it. I also love movies. Fantasy, action adventure, all the well-done escapist qualities that I appreciate in a good book, I like to see executed on screen. And of course the romances. The good movies are fewer in coming, but the strides that are being made in fantasy are tremendous – "Lord of the Rings," "Harry Potter," "X-Men," "The Matrix" ... wow, we live in a wonderful time to see movies. I am also a BIG "The Rock" fan - in the movies (not into wrestling). Bring on "The Scorpion King" sequel!

Maggie: I understand you work on an island off the coast of South Carolina that is only accessible by boat. Please tell us what it’s like working in such a wonderful environment.

Joey: One thing I learned at Antioch is that too much individuality is NOT a good thing. In our Western civilization, our focus is almost ninety-five percent on the individual, such that our whole lives are focused on our own importance. We don’t really learn the beauty of being quietly part of a community. When you work on an island whose property ownership consists primarily of wealthy and powerful retirement age people who are trying to determine who they are after having spent most of their lives being "very important people" (CEO’s, doctors, lawyers, etc.), you suddenly discover you’re working in a fishbowl populated by desperate piranhas trying to take tiny little bites out of you until there’s nothing left on your bones but ragged strips of your sanity.

LOL – okay, not exactly the wonderful environment description you were looking for, I’m sure. They always say that it’s very different to work at Disney versus visiting Disney. And so it is here. From a nature standpoint, the island itself is a beautiful place and I’m very attached to that aspect of it. As you guessed, Ballentyne Island in VIRTUAL REALITY is loosely based on it (though my island is a good deal more populated, with 200 permanent residents and up to 2500 developable properties.) I hope the current influx of population will not destroy its wild beauty or its emphasis on conservation of that environment. It’s nice to go to work and know you could see alligators, raccoons, snakes, lizards of several different types, and loggerhead turtles as part of the day’s adventures, and that the building regulations are intensely concerned about issues like tree and topography preservation.

Maggie: When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Joey: I started writing when I was in sixth grade and kept writing up through the first year of college. Amusingly enough, my first story was about five animals that go on a killing rampage against humans for all the bad things people did to them. Of course the animals all die in a big shoot-out in the end, a very tragic story (is there any wonder my parents wanted me to have psychiatric care? LOL). I was a very melodramatic teen (of course, the words melodramatic and teenager may be redundant), and my mother used to ask me why I couldn’t write happier stories. So I wrote her a poem about a knight discovering this beautiful maiden. I describe all her lovely features, the knight’s wonder at her, and then you find out in the last stanza she’s a corpse under glass (it’s a wonder my mother didn’t drown me at birth!). I won short story awards, attended "business of writing" courses, and had every intention of working toward being a professional writer. I even entered college as a creative writing major.

Then, in my sophomore college year, the drive just vanished. I moved fully into the animal rights movement, and apparently that was where I was intended to focus my energy, because for the next ten years I walked away from my writing and focused on activism. Oddly enough, around about the age of 27 - 28, it returned in full force. It was as if I had something I had to accomplish or influence during those ten years, and somewhere along the way I did it. I don’t know what it was ( *s* ). Perhaps someone I influenced during that time will go on to do far greater things than I did in that cause, but I was satisfied enough that I was able to walk away and start writing again. And two to three years later GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM was finished and sold to an electronic publisher.

Beaty: Your first published work, GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM, was a fantasy. What made you branch out into erotica?

Joey: Romance always figures into my work. I think the word romance has some negative connotations to it, but to me, romance/love is the central theme to every great story, and it is the one thing we all seem to consistently seek - that person with whom we can connect, bind ourselves, to go through life together. I’ve always had a very strong interest in the power of sexual intimacy, and MAKE HER DREAMS COME TRUE just delved into that interest in a way I honestly didn’t expect. And once I found myself neck deep in the realm of erotic romance, I found I liked the waters there, very much.

Maggie: Your bio says you write "erotic, paranormal and mainstream romance as well as epic fantasy." Is all of your work currently available?

Joey: Yes, it is. I have recently made GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM available for direct purchase on my site. Atlantic Bridge Publishing has held it since about 2000-2001, and Linda and I agreed it had lived its useful life there. I hope to find a print home for it one day, but until then I will sell it directly off my site. With respect to my erotic romance, the rest of my books are currently available at Ellora’s Cave Publishing. Two of my books are now available in print from Amazon - HOLDING THE CARDS and the ENCHAINED anthology - and my understanding is that Borders bookstores are also starting to carry print Ellora's Cave titles.

Maggie: Why are so many of your stories published as e-books? Did you choose the e-book format for any particular reasons?

Joey: I was rejected by the print publishing houses for GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM. So, based on a friend’s advice, I tried Dark Star Publishing in 1999 and they accepted the work. When they went under, Atlantic Bridge picked it up. I found through e-publishing I could get my work read by reviewers, submitted for awards, and could also network and achieve a credibility that could get my foot into print doors. Now, instead of the standard rejection letters, when I send in work for print consideration, I get personal notes from editors, encouragement to send future "different" work to them even if they’re not interested in what I sent. That’s all encouraging, except I don’t have anything different to send to them ( *lol* ). It’s still a good feeling to have it acknowledged by peers and professionals that I’m a good writer, that I’ve "made the grade." Dreams Unlimited picked up my first erotic romance title, and when they closed down, it ultimately ended up at Ellora’s Cave Publishing, after a pleasant interim stay at LTD Books. EC has become the home for my erotic romance offerings, and I am excited that EC will now be offering its titles in both print and electronic options.

Another boon of e-publishing is that it puts me in personal contact with fans. I get direct feedback on my work, and have met some wonderful people through that avenue.

Maggie: I saw in one of your on-line interviews that you won the Dream Realm Awards contest. Please tell us about the contest and the story that won.

Joey: GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM won the Dream Realm Awards contest in 2000. It is an award, sponsored and supported by a variety of e-publishers, to honor e-books in the categories related to fantasy and sci-fi.

I was delighted by this award, because it reflected what my fans had told me, that GUARDIAN was a very moving and exceptional story that brought together a lot of different elements – fantasy, our modern day world, New Age concepts, and the sweeping scope of an epic tale. Like most memorable stories, the central point of it is one person’s struggle to overcome the issues that most of us wrestle with – what are we here to do, and can we do it and still be true to our hearts? Adam Al-Aziz, my main character, is the spiritual leader of a world called Aegis, whose purpose is to protect all worlds along the Continuum, including Earth. He comes through the portal to Earth to find two priestesses of his world that have disappeared here, and the story focuses on his interaction with a gifted healer who steals his heart, Correen, and a man who becomes his best friend, Rob. They help Adam find his own humanity and integrate it with his destiny. Along the way, they discover that the disappearance of the priestesses is linked to an apocalypse that will end humanity on Earth. This book is the first in a five-book series, and there is so much that is going to happen to them. I can’t wait to tell the whole tale!

Maggie: Several of your stories have strong Wiccan themes. Where does that come from?

Joey: I am a practitioner of the Wiccan faith. I had started investigating it in 1997-98 as an aspect of one of my characters in GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM, Correen Diegas. Around about the same time, a friend I’d not talked to in a long time called me up unexpectedly, explained that she was Wiccan and, while I was not, she believed that I believed in most of the tenets of the faith, and invited me to join her coven. I discovered she was right, that much of the belief system of Wicca included tenets I had followed most of my life.

One of the great spiritual difficulties I had in my life was understanding why, if an all-powerful Deity existed, did It allow the awful things happen in the world that occurred every day to those unable to defend themselves – animals, children, the earth herself ... etc. Wicca answered that question for me. I also believe strongly in the power of sexuality, and Wicca’s duality in the form of a Lord and Lady, whose joining is an intrinsic part of the cycles of birth, life, death and re-birth, again struck a chord. Finally, this faith’s belief that there is no human superiority, that harmony among all living beings is the way of fulfillment and enlightenment, was key.

Since this interview may be released in October or early November, I’ll interject a little Wiccan trivia. October thirty-first is our New Year’s Eve, what Wiccans call Samhain. This is the end of our year, which reflects old agricultural traditions, marking the approximate end of the harvest season, when everything should be stored and ready for winter. The Wiccan holiday calendar reflects the agricultural and seasonal changes, because it is closely aligned with the rhythms of the Earth. Spiritually, it is the night when the Veil between the spirit and material world is the thinnest, when you can better touch those who have crossed over and feel close to them. It is also a time for endings, to make way for new beginnings, so if you’ve been carrying around baggage all year about something, this is the night you light a candle, say a spell and decide in your heart to let it go, accept and move on and embrace new goals and hopes. It is also a powerful energy raising night, if you wish to direct energy toward a specific goal or wish that meshes with these themes.

Beaty: I get the feeling from your Web site that you write more than one story at a time. Do characters from one story ever interfere with another?

Joey: Sometimes. I am working on "Board Resolution," an anthology contribution due to my editor by November tenth. Two secondary characters from NATURAL LAW started pouring ideas for their story into my head about a month ago, at a rate so intense that I’ve had to keep an ongoing outline to retain those ideas. I need to focus on "Board Resolution," but these two characters seem determined that I have to get all the ideas for their story down NOW, at least in outline form. They can be very impatient. The problem is, if my emotions get diverted toward their story, they’re not available to pour into the current story I’m developing, so it’s a tug of war where I sometimes have to do the proverbial fingers in the ear and sing, "Lalalalalala – I’m not listening to you, I’m working on 'Board Resolution' – lalalalalala." Again, a psychiatric budget line item IS a very good idea for an author (and I believe it can be written off on taxes. ;)

Beaty: Will the continuation of the Guardian series take us back to Earth so we know what happened?

Joey: Okay, this is a complicated question. My intention was to have the second book in the series set up what happens right after the conclusion of the first book. Adam and his Earth friends end up back in Aegis, and a prophecy will be revealed that indicates that, in order to save Earth from total destruction, five Guardians will come forward to fight one final battle with their enemies. The rest of the books in the series focus on each of the Guardians – how they get to Aegis. The third book was to tell the story of the first Guardian to arrive, a young man who is coming from the past, from the seventeenth century during the Golden Age of Piracy. His defenders, who help him get to Aegis, are his governess, Alison, and one of the most ruthless pirates of the time period, Chris O’Brian, the Raven. That book is titled LEGACY OF THE RAVEN. The intended second book (previously described) was to be titled DREAMS OF EARTH.

You remember the earlier question - Do characters from one story interfere with an ongoing story? Well, LEGACY OF THE RAVEN decided it was to be written before DREAMS OF EARTH. So I wrote it, and it is now done and going through some critique review by some helpful friends. The way the book ends, it points back to DREAMS, so I can then write DREAMS as the third book, and LEGACY can be the second.

Unfortunately, I’ve gotten some feedback that my GUARDIAN fans are going to be horrifically confused by LEGACY coming next in line, before DREAMS, and I might better just put it on the backburner and go ahead and write DREAMS and keep the original sequence. That’s what I’m considering now, so I’ll keep you posted. I’m hoping to get the series out before we’re all in nursing homes looking for our teeth!

LEGACY also has the length issue that GUARDIAN did. It is epic fantasy and is not long compared to most print epic fantasy, but e-publishing is about brevity. I’ve gotten feedback that it is too long, and I should break it in half. I’m thinking about that as well, but I’m afraid my muse is more firm on that. I didn’t break GUARDIAN, and I likely will not break LEGACY.

I’m actually looking for a couple more Guardian fans to read through LEGACY and give me their opinion on these issues. I’ve got a 50-50 response right now, and while I have to make the ultimate decision, I need some more feedback from those who read the first one. If you’re interested, send me an e-mail, and I’ll inflict it on the first couple of people who ask for it ( *lol* ).

Beaty: What kind of series is the Guardian series? Do we see the same characters continuing the battle to save Earth, will they just be secondary characters in another h/h story, or will we not see them again?

Joey: In the books that focus on specific Guardians coming to Aegis, the original characters will not be in the forefront, but they will be at the least in the very end and beginning of the book. DREAMS OF EARTH is all about those original characters and the discovery of the five-part prophecy. And of course, the final book will have all of the originals and the five Guardians. The Guardians themselves are going to be great characters. There will be James, the Duke’s son from the Golden Age of Piracy, and there will be two Guardians who come together, a dragon shape-shifter and the princess he falls in love with. Then there is one Guardian I can’t reveal because of the surprise factor ( *g* ), because that Guardian will be someone whom you already know. Finally, my most mesmerizing Guardian will come last – Ragnarok, a vampire, who commands the powers of Chaos and whose power rivals even that of Adam’s.

Beaty: Do your characters "talk" to you and get into trouble - e.g., doing things you really don’t want them to and taking stories in the "wrong" direction?

Joey: "Talk to me" implies they in some way consult me, and they don’t! Most the time they ignore me and go and do their own thing, leaving me reeling and saying, "Wow ... yeah, that’ll work." In MAKE HER DREAMS COME TRUE, I had no intention of that being a soft domination/ submission work. So much for intentions. And NATURAL LAW ... I still don’t know exactly how to explain NATURAL LAW. Many of my characters take on a life of their own and I fall in love with all of them, but there was something special about Violet and Mac. They were almost too fascinating ... Mac alone was one of the most absorbing characters I’ve ever had the privilege to explore, and putting him together with Violet - the synergy of the two of them mesmerized me. When the book was over, it haunted me in a way I hadn’t experienced before. It was very difficult to move on to the next project. In "Choice of Masters" (from ENCHAINED anthology), an entirely different "voice" drove that work. The interaction of the characters was far more formal and courtly, which reflected their medieval/fantasy environment, but it still took me by surprise because I wasn’t expecting that formal tone to take over the whole work, including the narrative.

My muse doesn’t pay any attention to me at all, either. I am resigned to a lack of mass market appeal, not just because my aggressive day job and chaotic life allow me barely enough time to write, let alone market my work, but because I seem to be incapable of driving a story in a direction that appeals to mass market publishing. Nearly everything I do is either too cross-genre, to non-politically correct, too long (one of my prior editors used to say she never had to worry about me turning anything in that was too short!) ... and the list goes on, but that is what my characters, and my muse, demand. I’ve thought a great deal about this issue, about the need of authors to work with the market to get their stories read, and about not be "too uppity" about changing my work. I agree with that, and I will make changes per an editor’s request, but there are certain things my muse tells me strongly I just can’t change. Mac and Violet’s story had to be told the way it was told. GUARDIAN OF THE CONTINUUM was the right length to tell the story the way it had to be told. I always hope that the fates might align so I can afford to be a fulltime writer and achieve mass success, but if that doesn’t happen, that’s the way the fates will it. What I value more than that dream are the e-mails from fans, those who tell me that the stories that have come from my heart have in fact touched them the way my muse told me they would, because they touched me that way, too. And I have been so blessed in my life, I can never complain about what I do not achieve, because any failures will be my own and not a lack of opportunities I have been given. I am grateful to my muse and my characters, for taking me along on so many wonderful journeys, and to the publishers who have believed that those stories should be heard.

Maggie: Your characters are very courageous. Some are physically courageous, like Mac in NATURAL LAW, but all are emotionally courageous and take a leap of faith to find what they want most in life. Is that theme a deliberate choice?

Joey: I guess most authors wonder about the subconscious issues motivating their writing. I think fear keeps many of us from embracing our full potential in relationships; we all seem to carry so much baggage these days and we use it like armor. Allowing those defenses to fall to realize the ultimate reward - making that permanent connection with the love of our life - that is a lifetime accomplishment, something that can give you the strength and bravery to face almost anything else. So is it a deliberate choice in my writing, to visit that theme over and over again? No, it is not. But it is obviously something I feel is worth writing about and exploring in many different ways.

Beaty: Do people like Mac (Alpha Sub from NATURAL LAW) really exist or is it just a very good fantasy? *g*

Joey: That’s a good question – wouldn’t it be nice to think so? Of course, I have a belief that my characters do exist somewhere, on some other plane of existence. The muse is the navigator and the writer is the channel through which they make their existence known in our world, and perhaps one day we will meet them face to face in another life or on another level. Now, metaphysical musings aside, I think people with qualities like Mac exist among us. Perhaps not with his packaging ( *g* ), but perhaps in people we overlook every day because they don’t have that type of packaging. But each day, they face and do things that require courage, integrity, and a great capacity to love and forgive.

Beaty: Will Marguerite (a secondary character from NATURAL LAW) get her own story?

Joey: *g* It’s interesting you should choose her. THE ICE QUEEN will feature Marguerite and Tyler, Violet’s mentor, in a very unusual Dominant/submissive love story (they’re the ones who have been clamoring for my attention, trying to distract me from "Board Resolution"). As those who have read the book know, both Marguerite and Tyler are portrayed as Dominants. So how they will come together as a couple will be unusual, and I am anticipating, at least from the original outline I’ve got going right now, that their story may even rival the intensity of Mac and Violet. Theirs will be a little darker, because Marguerite has some horrific issues in her past, but the love they realize will be worth the shadows.

Beaty: One of the things I got out of NATURAL LAW was a better understanding of the Domination/submission culture. It explained a lot through the thoughts and emotions of the characters. Was that one of the reasons for writing this story?

Joey: As noted earlier, while there are aspects of my belief systems and experiences that may influence the content of my writing, it is because they are intrinsic to the story itself, not because it is my desire to actively teach the reader, even if that is the end result. I know that sounds odd, when there is so much in this book that talks about the D/s culture, but it was almost like the scenes unfolded that way to teach me, to help me explore those issues for myself. It’s somewhat like looking at something that you can’t see if you look at it head on – you can see it out of your peripheral vision, but the second you look toward it, it’s gone. It’s the same way with writing. The moment you decide you’re writing something for a specific reason – to be published, to convey a personal point, etc. - ZAP! The creativity, the voices of your characters, all are silenced. But if you just let them tell their stories the way they want to tell it, you feel like you, the author, are the audience, and they are teaching you something about yourself.

Beaty and Maggie: We think the reason we could understand the culture better was the use of emotional domination instead of physical pain. What was the reason you chose this type of domination for the story? Was it a conscious effort to make it more "acceptable" to readers not familiar with D/s? Is D/s different from BDSM?

Joey: I think there are as many aspects of this as there are different viewpoints on the issue. To me, the emotional aspects of D/s are far more personally arousing and appealing, and because that is what absorbs my attention, that is what I write about. In my own head, I do differentiate somewhat between the two terms, thinking of BDSM as more of the purely physical use of pain and humiliation to stimulate the body - but again, that is in my own head. There are practitioners who use the terms interchangeably or not at all. I think from the standpoint of fiction, erotic romance in this area tends to be more generally appealing to women if it focuses on it from the emotional D/s angle rather than the sado/masochistic physical angle, or if it carefully balances the two. But that is no different from any other erotic romance. As Ellora’s Cave and now many other publishers have found – women want harder, better sex, but they want the romance and love as well. Ergo, erotic romance. I really don’t intentionally focus on keeping it toned down for the reader. If the characters say a scene has to be uncomfortable, that’s what it has to be. But I think the fact that the emotional issues are the overriding drive of the story is what keeps the reader along for the full ride, even the scarier parts of it.

Beaty: I usually like to talk to one of my favorite characters when interviewing an author. If you'd allow it, Joey, I'd love to ask Mac a question. "Mac, I read your beautiful story and I'd like to know a bit more of the HEA. Did it all work out - jobs, kids and D/s blending into a future together?"

Joey: The question is not so much whether I will allow it, but will Violet? ( *g* ) She’s been a bit taken aback by all the female attention Mac has gotten since NATURAL LAW, but of course he’s always been somewhat of an eye catcher. ;) She says that, for the sake of the interview, she’s okay with it, though. So let’s drop in on him. He likes to get up early, go for a morning swim off the dock, and then make Violet breakfast. And there he is now ... hmmm ... forgot to mention that he likes to swim in nothing, particularly this early in the morning. Look at that interesting skyline ...

"Er, towel, Mac?"

"Sounds like you have a sore throat, Sugar. You doin’ okay?" [Note: Since I am the author, Violet has grudgingly allowed Mac to call me "Sugar," though it makes it difficult to maintain professional decorum with him, I have to admit.]

"Fine," I wave a hand weakly. "Just ... towel."

He grins, wraps it around his waist and tucks in the end at his hip bone. "And what was it you wanted to ask me?"

"Beaty here wants to know how things are working out with you and Violet – kids, jobs, and how keeping D/s in the relationship is doing?"

His silver eyes shift to Beaty, and he nods cordially. "If you will follow me to the kitchen, I’ll answer that question. I need to start Violet’s breakfast. She had a long shift yesterday and I like to wake her with the smell of breakfast on her day off. We’re doing crepes this morning. If you’d like to join us, you’re welcome." He squats in front of the cabinet by the stove, retrieving the pots he’s seeking. Beads of water from his swim roll slowly down his broad back, glisten at the tips of the soft hair beneath his left arm, make the pelt across his chest sleek.

"I think ... well ..." an oddly shy smile crosses his lips and he turns his head toward us. "I think we’re about to find out about kids. She hasn’t told me yet, but I’m pretty certain Violet’s pregnant."

"And do you think that will be difficult, with the D/s?"

"No harder than it is for any set of parents to have a sex life with little ones around." That quick flash of grin again. "Only when we get a babysitter, it will be more likely so we can have a night at The Zone than to go out to dinner and a movie. Most of our relationship has more to do with ... well, with what’s between us emotionally than with whips and chains ... so it’s not like we’ll have a lot of stuff lying around we have to explain to the kids. Though some of it would double as good jungle gym stuff. There’s a restraint system she bought that ... well, enough said about that." He chuckles, starts the coffee. "So to answer your question, Beaty, we’re doing good. Better than good. I worry about her, of course. I always do. But I guess she does about me, too."

He shrugs, and it draws our attention to the scars along his back, the old bullet exit wound. "And I guess maybe I’m relieved that she’s having a baby. Because at least for a little while that will take her out of the field. Maybe I can even talk her into being a stay-at-home mom for the next eighteen to twenty years, and save my hair from turning any more gray."

"It’s silver," Violet says from the doorway, wrapped in a lavender robe and knuckling her eyes. "And I like your silver hair."

"Well, you should. You keep adding to it, Sugar. Especially since you’re studying for your detective’s exam now."

"And you’re such a paragon of domesticity yourself," she drawled. "Cowering from the least hint of danger."

"Well, if that was the case, I wouldn’t be married to you now, would I?" He grins, catches her about the waist, and nips at her neck. Her arm settles around his back with the ease of long familiarity, and gently strokes over the scars. The shadows in her eyes say the worry will always be there for them both, with the life they lead, but the way they fit together, their sudden absorption in one another, tells us that here is a love that will stand firm through everything - life and death, child care, and the compulsions of the D/s lifestyle.

Maggie: A couple of your books from Ellora’s Cave are available in print from Amazon. Will your other books also be available in print format?

Joey: My understanding is that all my books currently at EC are being scheduled for ultimate print release. I have completed print formatting on at least two of mine not yet available in print - IF WISHES WERE HORSES and NATURAL LAW - so I hope to see those available soon in print. If anyone wants to keep abreast of when my work will be available in print, or any news on my work, you can e-mail me or check in at my Web site monthly to see my news update on my homepage.

Maggie: What’s next for you? What irons do you have in the fire?

Joey: VIRTUAL REALITY has just been released, and as mentioned earlier, I’m working on "Board Resolution," an anthology contribution that currently is scheduled to be released March 2005. The idea for this book came from a personal fantasy of mine, about a woman who walks into a board room for a meeting with some high-powered male executives and ends up becoming their sexual plaything for the evening. Of course, there will be an emotional component to it, and one man who orchestrates the whole thing who wants her for his own ... ( *g* )

THE ICE QUEEN is not yet scheduled because I’ve asked to be taken off the deadline schedule. That means I’ll turn in work as I have it, and if a publisher wants it, they’ll schedule it where they have an opening. This will work better for my overwhelmingly busy personal life and keep me from being checked into a rubber room. However, I hope to have THE ICE QUEEN in EC’s hands for consideration sometime in 2005 if all goes well.

I offer free short stories on my site, and I just put a new one out about a month ago titled HEART QUEST, about a woman who goes hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains and discovers two mermen in a secluded lagoon. I love merpeople, and hope to craft more work about them in the future. They show up in LEGACY OF THE RAVEN as well, it being a pirate story after all! Come to my Web site to read a short story, send me an e-mail, or cruise for news and excerpts. I always like to hear from readers.