John Prather
June 9, 2021
John Painz
August 30, 2021
HA Blackwood was one of my first author friends, and the wonderful things I have to say about him could fill up an entire website all its own. He’s witty, hilariously funny, thoughtful, disarmingly charming…and incredibly talented. On both personal and professional levels, he has been invaluable to me.
Together, we initially navigated and learned the ropes of the Twitter #WritingCommunity with many moments that saw my face streaked with tears of laughter, he’s helped me with everything from scene logistics to blurbs, and we’ve shared trials and tribulations of writing and life.
And now, it is my absolute pleasure to introduce you to this man I adore (remember that word for later in the interview!) and the second book in his erotic romance series, Candid Camera. If you haven’t already, I highly recommend catching up with the series by first reading Tell-Tale Hearts. Both books are rich in their respective storylines as well as an abundance of very sexy scenes!
Without further ado, I give you my dear friend, HA Blackwood…
Congratulations on your latest release, Candid Camera! Give us a little background on your first book, Tell-Tale Hearts, and how that started.
I get into this in my bio on my Amazon author page. The short version is I had a very vivid, detailed dream, and I turned it into a book! The longer version isn’t much more interesting, but it is longer.
So, Darcy and Gemma continue their story in Candid Camera. What’s the story?
They’re entering a more domestic phase of their relationship when Gemma’s past reaches out and throws a wrench in things that sends them in a different direction. It’s a little film noir, a little erotic noir, and a whole lot of fun.
Did you know when you were writing Tell-Tale Hearts that there would be a sequel? And will we see Darcy and Gemma in a third book?
I didn’t know right away, but I did come up with the idea not too long after. It took me a lot longer to get it published than I would have liked, but it’s out and I’m pretty proud of it. It’s a fun read and the world needs more of those. As for a third book, I don’t have anything cooking right now, but the way my mind works, I’ll get struck with an idea out of nowhere and then it’s off to the races. I’m totally open to writing a third one if my mind cooperates.
Your books have some pretty racy, erotic scenes, but they’re also heavy on the storyline. How do you find a balance between 
those two components?
I consider my books to be erotic romance, or steamy contemporary. I’m not one of those people who watches porn and wants to know the pizza delivery guy’s motivation and back story, but I believe when you’re reading you should be entertained. I like my characters to be real and vivid. I want the reader to care what happens to them, and what happens in the story. The stories should be able to stand on their own if you closed the door to the bedroom, or the car, or the mountain spring, or wherever the sexy takes place. Once you’ve got that solid framework in place, you can open the door and have some fun with it.
In addition to erotic romance, you also have your first poetry book, Adored, releasing in July. Did you always have writing poetry on your radar or is it something that just happened?
It’s something that just happened. I’ve spent a lot of time on it over the last fifteen months or so and it’s something I really enjoy. I explain it in the introduction to the book (hint hint), but my process has evolved somewhat over the last year. It’s almost spiritual, really, like I’ve got some sort of mystical connection to a muse from whom ideas and the words flow, and then I fit them together like a puzzle. Sometimes I’ll wake up around three AM with an idea, and those turn out to be some of my best work. I think it’s because my mind isn’t cluttered and that connection is able to transmit more clearly. It really is a kind of magic.
As an author, do you set goals for yourself insofar as how many books you want to write and how often you plan to release?
I should, but no. I’m very scattered and I have too many WIPs going at one time, and I tend to focus on the ones that I’m the most excited about at any given moment. I have a start on a post-apocalyptic love story, a time-travel caper that will probably be published under a different name (provided the things I’m writing about don’t exist by the time I get it done!), another post-apoc story that for sure will be published under a different name, and I’m getting ready to release a serial on Kindle Vella about a fated couple who have lived many lives together, with the focus on their more adventurous ones. I have more than a hundred episodes written but for publication I’ll likely combine some of them.
You often post lyrics and music polls on Twitter. How much of a role does music play in your writing? Do you find inspiration in it?
I almost always write to music. I put on headphones and it helps me block out distractions. I have an eight-hour writing playlist that I use for most of my writing. When I write poetry, I need to tap into that magical connection, and the words need to be precise. So, if I have music going it can’t have lyrics. I have a classical playlist for that.
Tell us a secret about HA Blackwood!
My beard was a gift from Odin.
HA Blackwood’s links:
Adored – pre-order now – release 7/27/21
3 Comments
Thank you, Nikki, for another wonderful interview! I found it interesting how HA Blackwood strives to balance writing the more racy part of his books while also having grounded characters. It’s definitely difficult to find authors who manage to strike that balance–and who do it well. Oftentimes, authors lean too much on the racy parts of their story for my taste. I’ll have to check out some of HA Blackwood’s work for sure!
I recently finished Candid Camera, and boy, was it a great read! You won’t be disappointed. Make sure you have plenty of snacks nearby, because once you start reading, you won’t want to stop for anything!
I looked up the full book description, and I must say, a book that combines romance, mystery and some steamy scenes sounds like my type of story. I’m adding it to my list of books to read! Is there going to be a third book in the series?