Barbara Elsborg's 10Q Tuesday

What did you want to be when you grew up?  A spy. I really wanted to join the foreign office and be an undercover operative. But I told so many people, it sort of ruined my chances. Apart from which, I couldn’t cope with being tortured. I used to think I could but husband pointed out, they’d only have to threaten my kids and I’d say anything. Or tickle my feet.  

What are your favorite TV shows?   I watch very little TV. I like the news – how boring am I? But I really love Trueblood. It was a total coincidence that I created a vampire family called the Truebloods, so it’s a clan name for me rather than vampire blood, but I like the fact that I have something in common with the show and Ms Harris, though sadly not the fact that she’s sold more than a million ebooks!! 

How do you describe your writing style?   Well, I hope it’s easy to read, funny dialogue, heavy on character and non-brain taxing. I do tend to go for tall, blond heroines – oh, guess what – I’m tall and blonde. They tend to have some vile flaws and of course, I’m flawless. (cough) But the main gist of my stories is two damaged individuals (or three) who grow and heal through their relationship with each other. I want to make people laugh and cry and think. And if they think – I’ll read another by her, so much the better.

What book am I reading now?  The One That Got Away – by Lucy Dawson. It’s the story of married woman who on a whim gets in touch with an ex on Facebook and how she’s trawled into choppy waters. It’s a very uncomfortable read because you can feel disaster looming. It’s dark chick-lit.

Does your significant other read your stuff?  No, but he has just started to read Strangers, which is my favorite. I’ve asked him not to comment until he’s finished it. He can crush me with a look so he’s going to have to be careful. He likes seafaring books set in the Napoleonic era, so sexy contemporary stories about a movie star and a waitress are not his thing.

Tell us about your current release?  Chosen – out with Decadent at the beginning of June – is the dark and twisted tale of a manipulative bastard called Jack who drags a young woman on a nightmare journey across the States and she has no idea why. I like writing bad guys but Jack is more than bad – he’s a psychopath.

Do you play any sports?  I ski, I run and I do things in the bedroom. Hey, mind out of gutter – that would be a different sort of sport.

What group did you hang out with in high school?  The cool guys. Ah, no, that would be a lie. I had no friends and I’m not lying about that. I was very much a loner. I kept myself to myself and had conversations in my head with film stars, made up adventures for me to have with them and wrote them at night in bed. I have lots of books full of stories about me with all sorts of guys! If you want to know why I had no friends – because I realized how hurtful people could be and it made me not want to trust anyone. I was teased and bullied because of my height and I never really recovered from that for years. Not much fun when you have to wear flat shoes – and men’s at that! 

What songs are most played on your MP3?  Nora Roberts, Robbie Williams, James Morrison, Beautiful South. I run to music. I like Robbie best and he’s inspired several of my stories with his lyrics.

What is the next big thing?  A film is going to be made of five of my – oh no, that was a dream – sorry! Next big thing in my life – son is moving to the States and taking his dog. The dog that worships me, won’t let me use the loo on my own in case there are bad things in the bathroom, the dog that crawls into bed between me and husband if he can!