[Author Interview] Terry Spear – To Tempt The Wolf

Terry Spear author of To Tempt The Wolf is an award winning author, a retired officer of the US Army Reserves, and creator of award winning teddy bears. Before we get to her interview, here is the book description for To Tempt The Wolf: In this third in the series, wildlife photographer Tessa Anderson must prove her brother innocent of murder charges. But when she discovers a gorgeous naked man barely alive on her beach, she’s got a new world of troubles to deal with, not least of which is how he affects her with just a look, a touch, or a whispered word. Hunter Greymore is a lupus garou, a grey werewolf. Hoping to keep a low profile at Tessa’s cabin on the coast, he’s drawn into her life and into her bed. His animal instincts war with his human half, but in the end, the only thing he can do about this fascinating, adorable woman is to leave her forever unless she becomes one of them. Interview with Terry Spear.

1. Why werewolves?

Some might say I have wolves on the brain. A friend of mine, and fellow Sourcebooks author, Sharon Lathan, was talking about writing regencies and how she immerses herself in the
regency period while she’s creating her stories. I joined a wolf pack. Not literally, of course. But I do read about them all the time, check out every wolf-related news story I can,
watch wolf studies, and conduct other forms of research in an attempt to understand them better, even listen to wolves howling to be able to describe the experience like I did in Seduced by the Wolf. I include wolf characteristics in my werewolf characters, while they keep their human sensibilities when they’re wearing their wolf coats. When they’re human, they still have their enhanced wolf senses.

I’ve visited wolf reserves, been interviewed for Wolf International Magazine, and talked with several wolf and wolf dog owners about the joys and the trials of raising their wolf/wolf-dogs. I love the way the pack is like a family and the alpha male and female mate for life, for the most part, using this for the basis for my hero and heroine.

What inspired me to write werewolves when they were in their wolf forms to be as realistic to wolf behavior as possible, considering they still have a human thought process as well?

When I was young, I read Jack London’s White Fang and Call of the Wild and loved how he had written both man’s point of view, and the wolf’s point of view. I didn’t remember it until I was on my second book and interviewers kept asking me what had inspired my love of wolves. Jack London definitely did.

How are your werewolf stories similar or different from others?

In my stories, werewolves for the most part are born as such. The full moon has more of a draw on werewolves who have more human roots in their genes, than for royals who have had mostly werewolf genetics. And the royals are the only ones who can shift during any phase of the moon, whereas, the others can’t become a wolf during the new moon. So that leaves newly turned wolves with little control over their shapeshifting ability in the beginning.

Since I base them on real wolves, the packs are mostly gray, but some are Arctic wolves, which are still gray wolves, as in Legend of the White Wolf, and some are red wolves as in Seduced by the Wolf about a red pack of werewolves.

In To Tempt the Wolf, two of the men who are turned, deal with it in different ways, just like people will handle a situation differently based on their personalities. Some are stronger, some more weak-willed. The book also reveals a rare werewolf scenario, and a hero, Navy SEAL, who has lost everything—his pack, his sister, his home, and his memory, but feels some connection to the heroine, who isn’t exactly all human either.

What is your writing process?

I work full time, so I write on my off-time and it’s a totally seat-of-the-pants type of process. If I had to outline a book beforehand, I’d never write the story. As I develop the characters and conflicts, the story unfolds. Twists and turns in the plot magically appear. And the story is done.

Although I must admit I do plan the hero’s main goal, the heroine’s main goal, what motivates them, their occupation and something of the conflict. Which is really roughly the back cover blurb for the story. And then I go from there!

What is in store for the future?

I’m currently working on Book 11 of the werewolf series and have started a brand new jaguar shifter series, first book due out with Sourcebooks in Oct 2012. The research has been fun into big cat behavior as opposed to wolf behavior, but no takers on visiting the Amazon with me to get a real feel for the jungle!

Visit her website - www.terryspear.com

Thank you Terry!

Tags: Paranormal, Romance