Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Kathryn Jordan. Thanks for being here today Kathryn!

I'm very happy to be here. Fallen Angels is a perfect fit for my steamy novel, Hot Water.

To start, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Well, I was born in Minnesota but grew up here in the Southwest. My father was a Methodist minister, so we moved every 3 or 4 years, and you know what they say about preacher's daughters. But he was a wonderful man full of joy and adventure, and he and my mother gave me an appreciation for nature and far away places as well as a kind of "go for it" and "never give up" attitude.

I was a high school English teacher for years. I taught both here in Southern California and in international schools overseas - Egypt, Spain and the Philippines. After 3 years at Cairo American College I got serious about writing. I started getting up at 4:00 A.M. and writing for several hours before going to school. Hot Water is my fourth novel but first to sell. I retired from teaching in 2004 and have been busy ever since!

I have one son who is a commercial diver and lives in Covington, Louisiana. He was with me overseas and caught the adventure bug.

Can you tell us a little about your novel Hot Water?

Hot Water is about female empowerment and reclaiming your life. A Midwestern woman escapes her stifling life to live out a fantasy in one glorious weekend. She's from Minnesota and has never been west of the Mississippi (except to the Mall of America) and she takes this huge audacious step. Using the assumed name, Julia, she flies to California for a weekend at a lush spa resort in Desert Hot Springs, rents a red Lamborghini and hires a gorgeous male escort.

One thing I wanted to do in the book was break stereotypes, and the male escort, "William," is far more than one might expect. A blend of Antonio Banderas and Johnny Depp with a philosophy degree! This may be the only book where the characters are discussing philosophy while having sex! And many of the "deeper levels" in Hot Water, the issues of female empowerment and questioning the patriarchy are in the voice of this gorgeous younger man. After all, who would have more experience with unhappy women than a male escort?

But don't worry, the intellectual stuff doesn't get in the way of the hot romance!

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

I learned what can happen if you stop worrying what people might think (especially your mother) and just find fascinating characters and follow them. Hot Water wrote itself. It was so much fun! And I didn't compromise the style and substance I'd developed in writing mainstream "literary" novels that didn't sell... yet. I also learned to keep the pages turning. When a story takes place in one weekend, the clock is ticking loud, a good device. Most readers say they couldn't put it down.

Hot Water sold in 3 weeks! And I've been touring spa resorts in 7 states, as well as the usual book stores, libraries, etc. Even did events at the Paris and Aladdin Hotel Spas in Las Vegas! You know, tough job but someone has to do it! Recently a company in Spain purchased the world Spanish language rights and the Spanish version, Agua Caliente, is due out January 19th.

BTW my 88 year old mother loved the book. She passed it around her retirement home, and one 93 year old lady said she thought it should be in large print.

How much of your personality and life experiences are in your writing?

Well, there's definitely a character in Hot Water based on my first husband, but I won't give that away.

You can't write without injecting your own personality and experiences. There's a line in Ken Keysey's book, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest: "It's the truth, even if it didn't happen." I love that. And Maurice Sendak, author of the children's classic, Where The Wild Things Are, says the wild things were based on his relatives in Brooklyn. :)

Books I read on the ancient Goddess cultures influenced me as well as my own anger at a system that suppresses and diminishes women. Even SIN is blamed on woman. What's up with that, Fallen Angels?! So I wanted to explore what would happen if a woman did what men have been doing forever. I wanted to lift the curse of Eve. We often admire women who break society's rules, but they are almost always punished, i.e. Marilyn Monroe, Thelma and Louise. I wanted to change that.

And, yes, my own breaking out of a bad marriage surfaced in Hot Water. I suppose metaphorically I did what Julia does - only I went across the world. I used to ride my Arabian mare out beyond the pyramids. My first summer between teaching in Egypt, I spent on the Greek island of Corfu. Wow, that was me? I was 31, and yes I had a few adventures. Unfortunately I never found "William."

Isn't that why Romance novels are so popular? Men who are raised thinking they're superior and entitled can't possibly understand women's need for romance. Being romantic threatens their masculinity. But not William. William is a fantasy of the new man that is hopefully evolving now. Hurry, William!

When did you first start writing? What made you want to become a writer?

I started my first novel when I was 16. It was about my high school heart throb, captain of the football team. Yes, I fell for the jock syndrome. His friends called him "Dogface," and I thought he was gorgeous. Ah, hormones.

So I always wanted to be a writer. I fell in love with books early, Nancy Drew, the Black Stallion series, and my hero’s were authors. That's why I got degrees in literature and taught English.

Congratulations! You just won a year off from work to travel anywhere in the world and write the story of your dreams. Where do you go, what type of book do you write, and what’s the title?

What a great question. Interesting. I really did fall into something like this. At the spa resort where Hot Water is set, I met a man named John Walton who is the son of a silent screen star, Gladys Walton. Gladys was also Al Capone's girlfriend. (Mr. Walton believes Al Capone is his father). He hired me to write his mother's story. Never dreamed I'd do that, but what a story! I've been researching the Roaring Twenties and writing scenes with stars like Mary Pickford, Rudolph Valentino. I'm about 1/3 through, almost to Al Capone.

But the real answer is Egypt. As soon as I finish Gladys And Capone and Steam (sequel to Hot Water) I plan to return to Egypt and revive my first novel with a whole new story line. It's about a woman who goes back to Egypt after many years to find her half Egyptian son, and the novel will incorporate the events of history since I was there from 1978-81. It will be a mainstream novel, my magnum opus, I hope.

Could you give us a little peek into Steam, the sequel to Hot Water?

Steam takes up right where Hot Water left off. Julia and William are on their way to Mexico. There will be scenes in the Yucatan, the ancient city of Merida. Can they make their fantasy love real? Will Ralph find them?

How has being published changed your life, if at all?

I've been on the ride of my life! Have met wonderful women who've been so supportive. And best of all I'm writing full time now. Oh, and I have to get my nails done a lot for all the signings. :)

Most people only dream of becoming a successful writer. Now that you have accomplished that is there anything else you dream of doing?

Just to write as many books as I can for the next 20 years. And travel. I really want to travel again. I'd like to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and build houses for the poor in third world countries with my boyfriend who's a general contractor. Hey, maybe I did find William.
I also look forward to being a grandma. My son is engaged to a wonderful girl, and they're getting married next October at an old sugar plantation near New Orleans. I want to hold their baby in my arms.

How did you celebrate selling Hot Water?

My boyfriend and I had mud baths at Two Bunch Palms, the resort where Hot Water is set. And I had a party with friends and family. The book launch was at Two Bunch Palms too. How rare reading scenes that took place right where we were.

What’s one thing you would like your readers to know about you?

Never give up. I worked for 20 years, and finally realized my dream.

Is there anything else you would like to share with us today?

I have a pillow with this needle point message I love: "Behind Every Successful Woman Is Herself."

Thank you so much for spending time with us today Kathryn!
Readers be sure to visit Kathryn’s website at www.kathrynjordan.com and www.hotwaterthenovel.com

Interviewed by: Tammy