Buffi BeCraft, Author Interview
Buffi BeCraft, Interview
By Michelle Pillow, www.michellepillow.com
Buffi BeCraft is your normal everyday humdrum writer living high on hill in the woods surrounded by her very own pack of canines and humans. Throw in a few cats and the family is complete. Of course, you just might miss her while she’s out and about sporting whatever hair color of the day strikes her fancy—green, blue, purple, cotton candy. And when muse strikes, and she strikes hard, Buffi heads off to the writer cave to find out what’s going on in her imagination. Fantasy, paranormal, sci-fi or erotic romance, no genre is off limits
Her book, Cat Scratch Fever, is and erotic paranormal romance that released in ebook the fall of 2013.
Q: In your book, Cat Scratch Fever, the hero is a Panwere or shapeshifter with different forms. What inspired you to create such a character?
Buffi: Cat Scratch Fever is actually a transition story in the Blue Collar Werewolf Series. From the beginning of the series, I always wanted to bring Matthew back from book 1-Weremones, but I knew a sexy workaholic with parent issues would never fit into the traditional wolf pack. So why not make him a cat. And not just ANY cat, the Once and Future King of ALL the cats! From the beginning of the story, he came forward as a guy in need of redemption—and a family. Naomi is just the kind woman with the inner strength for a queen.
On top of all that, the rest of the Blue Collar Werewolf gang is back. I know readers want to what’s going on with Bradley and Brandon and find out how the other guys are doing with their mates. Everyone loves to catch up on old friends and readers will see just what trouble is brewing with the Anderson County Wolven Pack. New paranormal alliances will be made and crazy family reunions are in the mix.
Of course, our very own Spooky, who thinks he is descended from the gods, was the inspiration for the temple cats and Ramses’ tuna song and dance. Arrogant, sneaky, entitled… the Spookmeister definitely believes he’s a divine feline. I couldn’t not put Spooky in a story!
Q: When world building, did you base your story off of known myths throughout history?
Buffi: I keep my mythology loose and try to stay away from relevant events in history. Why? Flexibility! And why would I want to take away from a special date’s significance? I’d much rather make my own historical dates—and history!
Q: What myths or legends inspired you?
Buffi: Oooo. I LOVE mythology. I also love to research original monster legends and think of ways that they could have been interpreted differently. I always wonder what makes the monster a monster. Since I’m a big believer in free choice, I like to play with the circumstances that make a person choose good or evil. Just because a monster is ugly, is it truly evil? Or what darkness lies underneath a pretty façade? What other kinds of psychological factors make our good guys good and our monsters evil? Just like the original Vlad the Impaler did his very best to cultivate a horrifying reputation to protect his people. That makes me wonder, what he was like as a person. The times were horrible and he had to do even more horrible things to keep the invaders at bay. But what choices brought him to that point? Could the things he had done actually have been heroic?
Q: Why do you think readers, and society in general, are fascinated by the paranormal?
Buffi: I think we like exploring the unknown and uncovering what’s in the shadows. Society now is far less superstitious that it once was. Now we can expose the thing in the dark before it gets us, unmask it, and make it less scary. We explore the paranormal landscape and make it our own with new legends and stories to pass on, just like our ancestors did.
Q: What are your favorite paranormal shows, movies and books?
Buffi: True Blood- Of course! I’m a pretty eclectic reader and love all kinds of paranormal stories. I love discovering new and old authors and shows. Some of my favorites are the old werewolf movies and digging through stacks of books at the used bookstore to find forgotten treasures.
Q: Do you believe in the supernatural?
Buffi: Oh, yeah. I’m a true believer. There are things out there that the myths are based on. Things that go bump in the night (and not just the romantic parts) are a major part of our collective human culture. For the most part, yeah, I’m sure there is a good explanation. But I do certainly think that “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy” as the great bard put it. As a writer, I explore what those other things in heaven and earth could be.
Q: Have you ever had a paranormal experience?
Buffi: Oh, yeah. Boy have I. I have more than one story but I’ll only regal you with my last. It was a long time ago. And I’m pretty darn glad that’s all behind me.
Let’s see, I had all the required elements: the creepy sensation of being watched and followed from room to room, small shadowy things that darted around corners out of the edge of your vision. Let’s see, there was a guy in my own personal story who was being drawn to all sorts of haunts like cemeteries, spooky railroad tracks with scary histories, and other places. Who knows what spiritual garbage followed him home. Then there was—yes, you guessed it— dabbling in dark things.
I think the weirdest part of the story was when I tried moving boxes of books out of the house and couldn’t even budge them from the floor. My mom, a tiny women weighing maybe a 100lbs, snatched them up and toted them out for me. Now I’m an old school RPG gamer and DM, but the thing about those books was that they were occult RPG manuals. Dark stuff meant for play and I seriously could not pick them up. Me, a mom that toted two toddlers around all the time. Those books would not budge and the creepy feeling of being watched in my kitchen did not leave until the box was hauled out the door and to the garage. And to this day, I swear that whatever was keeping those books in place followed them out. I drew a line at the garage door and wound up moving a few months later.
The lesson learned? Not all guys are your knight in shining armor and some things you just don’t play with.
Q: What kind of paranormal creatures do you wish you could meet?
Buffi: Ummmmm. No, thank you. Hahahaha! Really. Take vampires for example. If I were to meet Dracula, I’d still be screaming. As for TV vampires, Angel was sexy, brooding, tortured….and well I’d have to tell the guy to get a grip. Spike—screaming. Bill the vampire? Uh.,,,well I’d back away slowly. I never trusted that guy in the books or TV. Eric the vampire? Drool, drool, scream and hide! Yeah, I’m pretty much a coward at heart. Now a werewolf—that all depends on if they are snarling and trying to chew my leg off. I suppose I’m pretty suspicious. Ultimate cosmic power and all that.
Q: If given the chance, would you become a paranormal creature?
Buffi: No, I don’t think I’d actively choose to become a paranormal creature. Becoming something else wouldn’t solve my current problems; it would only bring a new set. Now, if I didn’t have a choice, I like canine shape shifters the best. Animals live in the moment and I would hope that would transition over. Unfortunately, we still have our human side to mess things up. But still, I think I could see myself rocking a major set of teeth, claws, and an uber metabolism that allowed me to put away calories without the consequences. On the other paw, I’d really miss chocolate. Hmmmmm….
Q: How would you react if you came face to face with a ghost or vampire?
Buffi: Sadly folks, I have discovered that I am a screamer. (Raising my hand and hanging my head.) I am that chick in the movies that freezes and screams while you yell at her to haul her butt out of there. Spider, scorpions, snakes…. Yes, I stand there and scream until my hero Jason saves me. Talk about your romance hero. Dragons? Pfft. Give me a wonderful guy who will come running with a shoe to save you from the dreaded wee spider that has you cornered in the bathtub.
Bees….well those are my special hell. Those dratted things chase me— so I run. A couple of years ago, a particularly vicious bumblebee taunted me all the way down the road at top speed. You never saw a short writer run so fast. I wound up throwing my back out and giving up vanilla perfume for good. And yes, I screamed the whole way. If they’d been zombies, I’d have been a nice shrill homing beacon.
Q: What does the future hold for your writing?
Buffi: I plan to write until they find me slumped over my keyboard. I’ll always have a special love for my Blue Collar Werewolves and have no plans to stop that series any time soon. I miss them about six months after finishing one of their stories and have to go back and see what they are up to next. As for my Super Moon Apocalypse stories, I’ve been having a blast destroying the world and showing what reserves the human race still has. We’re either really awesome…or cockroaches. Can’t kill us all—Ha!
No, actually I am enjoying exploring love in surprising circumstances with very unconventional relationships. Now with my friend Belladonna Bordeaux playing in my sandbox, we’ve been getting into even more trouble. Oh, yeah. I mean, we’re having even more fun writing. Not all of the Super Moon stories are shorts. Option 3 will be a novella and our stories will highlight different areas of the country and how the people and paranormals have coped in the aftermath of the end of the world.
Q: Have you tried Tarot Cards?
Buffi: I love my Tarot cards. I don’t do the process correctly though. I hate asking questions about the future because I don’t believe that our fates are set in stone. Time is a fluid thing and our choices depend on many factors. We are given free will and to know what may or may not happen affects those choices, ultimately changing the future.
Q: Have you ever been abducted by aliens?
Buffi: Do relatives count? Some of mine are kind of odd but I love them anyway.
Thanks for joining us, Buffi!
You can learn more about Buffi and her books at her website, www.buffibecraft.net.
Sampling of Buffi’s other paranormal titles–
The Blue Collar Werewolf Series Romance/ Paranormal Fantasy
Weremones-ISBN-10: 1586088912 ISBN-13: 978-1586088910- Released Mar 2007
PMSING-ISBN-10: 1603940138 ISBN-13: 978-1603940139 – Released 2007
Making Tracks-ISBN-10: 1603940227 ISBN-13: 978-1603940221-Released 2007
Creature Comforts-ASIN: B008O7VZ6E –Released Oct 2009
Cat Scratch Fever-Release Fall 2013
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