1. When did you start writing? How many manuscripts did you write before selling the first one?
I wrote my first book in the fifth grade when my teacher assigned a project – to write a book to be placed in a class lending library. I knew then I wanted to be a writer, but didn’t seriously decide to start a novel until senior year of high school. I worked on that manuscript off and on for quite some time. When I showed it to Fern Michaels (I was taking an adult ed class she was offering), she sent it off to her publisher who asked me to try something contemporary. A year or so later, I sent off that manuscript and eventually started another. Third time was the charm – that book was NOW AND ALWAYS and helped launch the Encanto line.
2. Please tell us about your current release, Sex and the South Beach Chicas. This book has received amazing reviews! What was the inspiration behind the story? Why did you choose South Beach as the setting?
I love South Beach. The Art Deco buildings right next to the ocean are just lovely. Plus, there’s a vibe to the whole area that is always alive. When I was young, we used to stay at the hotels there which were the cheapest in the area since at that time South Beach was in a downward spiral. Even then the area called to me. Since my vamp books are set in Manhattan and rather dark, I wanted to write a totally different and more realistic story about the relationships that women have. To set that book apart stylistically and have it be light and sexy, I thought – why not set it in South Beach! What inspired me was real life since I had seen so many women lose friends as their lives changed and had experienced it myself. I wanted to write a book about women strong enough to deal with the changes and with keeping their friends. I feel inspired by the book because so many women have told me after reading it that it made them pick up the phone and call an old friend they hadn’t spoken to in awhile.
3. More Than A Mission was an August 2006, Silhouette Intimate Moments release. On the cover it reads: Revenge has never been hotter. How hot is the revenge in this book? Where did this idea come from?
Really and truly hot. There was an immediate chemistry between these characters even though they are supposed to be enemies. As for the idea, I can’t take credit for some of it. I was asked to participate in the CAPTURING THE CROWN continuity series with some wonderful authors. In fact, we liked working together so much that a sequel starts next July and the series is titled MISSION IMPASSIONED. For the CROWN series, the authors were provided the basic elements of the stories and the characters. After that it was up to you to make up the conflicts and pick up the threads from the earlier story and set the foundation up for the next story. It was quite a challenge, but totally fun.
4. You also write about vampires in a series entitled, The Calling. I understand the next book is due out in November of 2006. Please tell us about The Calling vampire series and the book that will be out next month.
Actually, DEATH CALLS will be out in December, followed by DEVOTION CALLS in January and BLOOD CALLS in May. The first three books were done for Silhouette Intimate Moments and sold quite well. We are now also discussing the next three books in the series as well as a possible single title spin off of two of the characters – Maggie and David. I love the darkness and complexity of the characters in THE CALLING stories, but in particular of Diana Reyes and Ryder Latimer. They are tortured Alpha heroes as those who read DARKNESS CALLS can attest to. DEATH CALLS revisits them again, which is quite exciting, but the book does stand alone for those who haven’t read the earlier book. In DEATH CALLS, Ryder and Diana are faced with the realities of a love affair between a vampire and a human and the pain and sacrifice that each must make by continuing that love affair. I won’t give too much away, but we will see possible new love interests for both of the main characters and an exciting actio n plot as Diana tries to stop a terrorist plot in Manhattan!
5. What type of research goes into the vampire books? Do your vampires differ from the traditional vampire? I’ve heard editors say they want vampires with a twist. What do they mean by that?
I researched the existing mythology of vampires and what were some of the accepted “truths”. Although editors want a twist, you can only go so far before purists think you’ve destroyed the concept. For example, there was an episode of SUPERNATURAL (a great show by the way with some real hotties) where the vamps couldn’t be killed by all the traditional means. That really pulled me out of the story and my daughter, who isn’t into the vamp thing as much as me, felt the same way. Possibly if there had been more time spent on explaining why they could survive a staking, etc. we could have bought the story and I guess that answers the “twist” question. If you want to do something special or different, make sure you lay down a believable groundwork so that readers will buy it and enjoy how you’ve changed the rules. Also, don’t be afraid to explore new mythologies – for example a chupacabra and a psychic healer (which are both in DEVOTION CALL S).
6. You’re not only a prolific writer, but an attorney as well! How do you balance family and two demanding careers?
It takes a lot of juggling, but also determination. Family always comes first even when I’m on deadline, so I make time for them. I also need to make sure I deal with all my responsibilities as an attorney. That means that if I have to get up at 4 or 5 a.m. to write and stay up until 1 a.m., I do it. Sometimes it’s rough because you feel like you’ve emptied your brain of any thoughts. One good trick I’ve learned is to visualize scenes while I’m not at the keyboard. While I walk, or clean, or as I am going to sleep, I think about the next scene I’m going to write and get the basics of it down in my head. By doing that, I am ready to start writing when I sit at the keyboard.
7. Do you have a writing routine? How do you meet multiple deadlines?
If I’m not faced with a pressing deadline, I write every day on the train to and from work and for about 3 hours each day on Saturday and Sunday. If something has happened (and it does sometimes) and I must finish a book ASAP, I will not only do the above, but I will write for another hour or two once I get home and for long stretches at a time on the weekend. Those long bouts are rough so I try to do about 3 to 4 hours and then take an hour or two break. Then it’s back to writing for another 3 or 4 hours with another break again until the brain is empty and the fingers are bloody stubs.
8. Do you write the first draft without revising, or do you edit as you go? How long are your books? How long do they take to write?
I write the first three chapters and then go back and revise them. I find that in those few chapters I’ve got to set up the basic plot and conflicts for the reader and for myself. Once those are in good shape, I will write all the way to the end without revising. Then I set the book aside for a week or two and start reading/revising from the beginning to the end. Sometimes a scene will scream to get written sooner and I’ll do it out of order, and that’s okay to do. When the voices scream in my head, I LISTEN!
My category books are anywhere from 260 to 290 pages. I’ve written one in as short a time as 3 or 4 weeks when it needed to be done. I prefer to take at least two months to do one because that lets me set it aside and revise if necessary.
My singles titles from about 325 to 350. These take much longer because there are secondary plots and characters. With the greater length, you also have the benefits of taking more time to develop the characters. Normally, one of my single titles takes 4 or 5 months.
I must also confess that I work on multiple projects at once for a variety of reasons. So, I may be working on a category book, while doing revisions or writing a single title and I always am jotting down notes or plans for the next proposal I’m going to do. I believe you need to keep things out there for acquisition on a regular basis because schedules fill up fast and you don’t want too big a gap between your books.
9. What are you working on now? Do you plan to write a follow-up to Sex and the South Beach Chicas?
I am definitely doing a follow-up to Chicas. The book will be out in Sept. 2007 and the story revolves around Sylvia and Carlos, and Sylvia’s mom and dad -- Virginia and Pablo. This is an interesting story because it delves further into Sylvia’s problem with men (since men are dogs according to Sylvia) and also explores how fortysomething women are still sexual and sexy creatures!
10. What advice would you like to offer our readers?
Never stop trying. No matter how many rejection letters you get, keep on writing and thinking of your next idea. The old adage about success being 10% and 90% perseverance is totally true. No matter what stage of your career you are in, you will face rejection and you can’t let it get you down. Just plow forward and keep on reaching for your dreams.
Caridad Piñeiro Scordato was born in Havana Cuba and settled in the New York Metropolitan area. She attended Villanova University on a Presidential Scholarship and graduated Magna cum laude. Caridad earned her Juris Doctor from St. John's University and became the first female and Latino partner of Abelman, Frayne & Schwab, an Intellectual Property firm in Midtown Manhattan.
Caridad is a multi-published author whose love of the written word developed when her fifth grade teacher assigned a project - to write a book that would be placed in a class lending library. She has been hooked on writing ever since.
Caridad’s seventh novel, DARKNESS CALLS, was released by Silhouette Intimate Moments in March 2004. THE CALLING vampire series, based on characters from DARKNESS CALLS, debuted with DANGER CALLS in June 2005 and TEMPTATION CALLS in October 2005. Due to overwhelming fan support and reviews, look for DEATH CALLS and two other books in THE CALLING Vampires series beginning in December 2006! DEATH CALLS will help Silhouette launch its new Nocturne paranormal line and Caridad was one of the authors featured by Harlequin at this year’s BookExpo in Washington D.C.
In September 2006, SEX AND THE SOUTH BEACH CHICAS will debut from Simon & Schuster’s Downtown Press. Three other releases are scheduled for 2007, including SOUTH BEACH CHICAS CATCH THEIR MAN! In April 2005, Caridad participated in the first ever Chica Lit anthology titled FRIDAY NIGHT CHICAS from St. Martin’s Press.
Join Caridad and five other writers in April 2006 for the CAPTURING THE CROWN series from Silhouette Intimate Moments. Caridad’s title, MORE THAN A MISSION, will be available in August. The sequel to MORE THAN A MISSION, tentatively titled THE LAZARUS CODE, will be available in August 2007.
When not writing, Caridad teaches workshops on various topics related to writing and heads a writing group. Caridad has appeared on Fox Television’s Good Day New York, New Jersey News’ Jersey’s Talking with Lee Leonard and WGN-TV’s Adelante Chicago as well as being one of the Latino authors featured at the first ever Spanish Pavilion at the 2000 Chicago BookExpo America. Articles featuring Caridad’s works have appeared in the New York Daily News, Star Ledger, Sun Sentinel, latinolink.com, Variety Yahoo! Online News, and Waterbury Republican-American.
