When Kieran Kramer Met the Banditas...

posted by Christine Wells

It's my absolute pleasure to introduce Kieran Kramer, who is taking the romance world by storm with her "Impossible Bachelors" series. It's wonderful to have Kieran with us. I'm thrilled to announce that Kieran is offering some very special prizes to our Bandit Buddies today. So get commenting for a chance to win!

1. Kieran, a warm welcome to the bandit lair and congratulations on your debut! Your Regency historical, WHEN HARRY MET MOLLY is out this month, to be followed closely by DUKES TO THE LEFT OF ME, PRINCES TO THE RIGHT. Can you tell us a bit about the books and your inspiration for writing the series?

Hi! I'm so glad to be here! My four-book series, The Impossible Bachelors, is about four super sexy Regency-era bachelors who are convinced they're not destined for the marriage altar. But of course, they're all wrong!

Don't you just love when Cupid's arrow strikes someone who's running away from love? I know I do. It's diabolical of me, perhaps, but I can't help thinking, "YES!" when they realize they can't live without the women who are driving them crazy. :>)

2. You've worked for the CIA and as a freelance journalist, among other things. What drew you to write Regency historicals rather than, say, thrillers or non-fiction?

I like a lot of things. What drew me to the CIA and to working for a newspaper was my sense of adventure. As for my writing life, I find it more exciting to make up stories. I'm into character way more than plot, and thrillers are very plot-heavy for me. And yes, truth is stranger than fiction, but rather than report on real occurrences, I'd rather spin some tall tales!! That's just more fun for me. Of course, everyone's different. Thank goodness we DO have thriller writers and journalists! Let me write my lighthearted fiction stories, and I'll leave them to their sort of writing.

3. We love hearing call stories in the lair! Would you care to tell us yours?

Oh, I love my call story, so I'll be glad to share! I was riding along a narrow country road, heading to jury duty in the small town next to mine, thinking,"Gosh, I'm bored," and yawning and dreading sitting still like a good girl in the court room… when I got a call from my fabulous agent. She proceeded to tell me the series had sold and blahblahblah--I'm sorry. I have NO idea what she said next. All I remember now is that my hands were super sweaty on the wheel of the car, and I was sort of shaking all over, so I told her I had to hang up before I drove off the road into a corn field. And then I threw the cell phone down, drove with TWO hands, and got to the courthouse, where I had to be super quiet and respectful, when I really wanted to shout and dance. And then, when asked my profession, I stood up and told the judge and the lawyers and the jury pool that I was a professional writer. I know I was I grinning from ear to ear! Somehow, I didn't get selected, and I got to drive a whole half hour home and tell my family and neighbors the unbelievable news and went running around on the streets, because I think we should all do that every chance we get--running around on the streets and yelling about how great life is.

4. What are three things you want readers to know about your stories?

a) I want you to laugh and have fun with them.
b) They reflect my honest belief that love is EVERYTHING and that the good guys are always gonna win in the end!
c) They're always about Girl Power, too. I like my heroines to be brave, to be honest, and to put themselves out there--to risk it all!

5. Tell us 5 quirky things that people might not know about you.

Oh, this'll be fun.

1) My favorite breakfast of the year is the morning after Thanksgiving, where I wake up, and before the sleep is even out of my eyes, I cut myself a large piece of pumpkin pie (smothered in Cool Whip) and a slab of pecan pie (I put a dollop of real whipped cream on that) and dig in. Mmm-mmm!

2) I talk to my pets in a sort of weird baby voice that would make you sick if you heard it.

3) I wear the same khaki skort over and over every day in the summer, and I wonder when it's going to wear out from all the washings and when my neighbors are ever going to approach me and ask me why I can't buy a new skort or shorts or skirt or dress or something!

4) I love Raisinettes so much, you'd better hide them if I come to your house.

5) Whenever I'm with people from foreign countries, I start adopting their accent almost immediately. It's so embarrassing!

LOL, I can identify with a couple of those! Thank you so much for being with us today, Kieran! Now, what would you like to ask our readers?

First of all, I want to say I had so much fun answering your questions! Thanks for having me. I'm going to give away TWO ARCs of Dukes to the Left of Me, Princes to the Right and ONE final copy of When Harry Met Molly.

And the question I'd like to ask your readers is…(drum roll)…

WHAT HAS MADE YOU LAUGH SO HARD THAT IF YOU WERE DRINKING CHOCOLATE MILK, IT WOULD HAVE COME OUT YOUR NOSE? OR MAYBE DID?

I'll start: It happened when my dad tried to lower my brother via a pulley rope slung around a giant tree branch onto the back of a stubborn mule named Jack who wouldn't let anyone NEAR him! (is my family weird, or what?) Jack won. Brother lost. Jack, who was eating a strategically placed pile of delicious mule treats beneath the tree branch, bucked and kicked as soon as my brother got close to straddling him and then ran as fast as his hooves could carry him away from those rude humans!