Vicki Gaia is an artist at heart, whether she’s using paints, paper, glue -- or words. Her novels are about romance, but with the rules stretched. Her heroes are flawed, and her heroines are strong-willed. Her insightful and intuitive portrayals of unpredictable human nature make for good reads. Vicki’s stories and novels focus on relationships, and how love can transform.

Warring Hearts is the first of a 3-book series set during WWII, and is about finding love and trust among a war threatening the very heart of the world. She is currently writing Warring Hearts Book 2- Fragments of Light and putting the final touches on her novel set in San Francisco during the Summer of Love. Gracie and the Bad Hat is a contemporary romance to be published by Awe-Struck Ebooks in 2007.

Vicki’s short story Angels Go Naked is published on the Romance Central website at www.romance-central.com.

Q: What made you start writing and when did you start?
A: I started writing at the turn of the century - the 21st century! I opened an art gallery with a friend in 1999. I found it difficult to spend time in my art studio, so I began writing short stories for a creative outlet - quickie romances. After about two years of writing, I decided to try my hand at a novel. I blush at my first attempt, but my sister loved it and encouraged me to write a sequel. My laptop became my best friend and companion. I took it to the gallery and wrote during our slow times. Writing became a passion and I was hooked!

Q: What type of books do you write? Is there a reason you write (for instance) historical romance rather than science fiction?
A: I'm an avid reader and enjoy all types of fiction and non-fiction. But the stories I love to write revolve around love relationships. Historical romances are fun because it gives me the excuse to research the period I'm writing in. I find history fascinating. Human nature hasn't really changed. Society and cultural mores are different, but we struggle with the same relationship issues as our ancestors.

Q: How do you come up with the idea for a book? Once you have an idea, do you plot it out, fly by the seat of your pants, or what?
A: Oh, I'm pretty much a fly by your seat kind of girl! I wish I could be more organized and plot out my story chapter by chapter, but this doesn't work for me. Sometimes working on the fly gets me in trouble, and I'll have to rewrite sections of my book when a character defies me! My story ideas come from reading history books and surfing the Net on a subject of interest. Currently, I'm interested in Neolithic cultures and plan to visit Glastonbury and Malta this year. From my time spent overseas, I hope to sketch out an interesting plot for a book.

Q: Tell us about the first time you got the call or the email from a publisher wanting to publish one of your books.
A: It was an email from Kathryn at Awe-Struck E-books that she accepted my World War II romance – Warring Hearts! After numerous rejections from agents, and authors telling me that my WWII setting would never sell, I couldn't believe that Claire and Richard would see the light of day! I can't tell you enough how important it is for a writer to get this kind of recognition from a respectable publisher. It really boosted my confidence to keep writing. I was floating the rest of the day, hardly aware of what was going on around me. All I could think about was that my book was going to be published!

Q: If you include love scenes in your books, are they difficult for you to write? How do you decide whether to include a love scene at that point in the book, and if so, how explicit to make it?
A: Oh yes, they are difficult to write! Difficult because I hate to repeat myself and write the same love scene over and over - there are only so many words for body parts :) And, I want the love scene to flow. I'd hate for the reader to think that I'd included a sex scene just to spice up the story and add more pages to my book. My books include sex because of the type of characters I write about – artists, bohemians and the avant-garde. Even in the 1940's there was plenty of fooling around, especially among the artists and bohemians. How would I rate my stories? I guess R-rated, spicy but not flaming hot!

Q: Out of all the characters you've created, which is your favorite, and why?
A: This is hard to answer because I really like all my characters, but my favorite would have to be Richard Hart of Warring Hearts. He's a complex and difficult man to figure out and this is what attracts me to him. He's been tortured and beaten down, but he still performs his duty because he believes this is the right thing to do. My husband claims I love this character because I can make him suffer! But, I swear, that's not true! It's his suffering that makes him fun to write, and his struggles in trying to understand Claire.

Q: How much of your own life and experiences do you put into your books?
A: Even if it's a subconscious act, I think every writer puts some of their experiences and habits into their books. I don't purposely set out to do this. My characters are very different from me. But they do have certain habits of mine – like a sweet tooth! Steven Levy, my protagonist in Gracie and the Bad Hat cannot go into a bakery or coffeehouse without ordering dessert. And my characters tend to have artsy careers – since this is my background and interest. Sometimes it goes the other way, and my character has a trait I don't have but would love to – like Claire of Warring Hearts. She can eat heaps of food, and never gain a pound!

Q: What traits do you like or dislike in a hero or heroine?
A: I don't like perfect characters where the men are drop-dead gorgeous and the women model-beautiful. I like my characters to be scarred or internally scarred in some way. I dislike whiny characters. I had to rewrite a part of my draft because a reader complained my hero whined too much – yikes! What I like are characters that are flawed but have an internal strength about them.

Q: Are your books something you alone create, or do you have trusted advisors, brainstorm partners, or first readers you rely on to help you get the story right?
A: I have two very trusted readers I rely on to help me with my stories. They help edit for grammar, typos and plot holes! They are both writers and have books published. I love to brainstorm plot ideas with them, because sometimes I'm too close to a story to see the obvious – or, a different, but better approach for the storyline. Recently, I had one of the readers question two scenes in my upcoming novel – Fragments of Light. She felt the scenes made my male character appear buffoonish and I should delete or rewrite the scenes. Boy, did I balk, the hairs on my arms rose in defense because I loved these scenes - the humor, the dialogue! But after careful thought, she was right. My male character was anything but a buffoon. I changed the scenes. This is how helpful a reader can be. A good reader will make you question and defend your scenes but also will be your biggest fan when you feel like tossing your manuscript and laptop in the trashcan.

Q: What comes first-the plot, the characters, or the setting?
A: Good question! Let's see, this is hard to answer, but I think for me it's the setting. Since I tend to write historical romance, I like to choose a period of history that I'm interested in. In my research, I'm looking for an unusual event or happening – to spark a story idea. I'm currently working on Book 2 of Warring Hearts that takes place in 1943 in New York City. Many exiled artists from Occupied Europe moved to New York. This influx of European artists influenced the young American artists, transforming New York City as THE Mecca for any serious artist. I worked this event into my plot because my heroine, Claire, is a young artist struggling to make it in the art world.