Ready to Rock? Interview with Olivia Cunning, author of Rock Hard

I have a confession...and it's not much of one to anyone who knows me. I LOVE Olivia Cunning's books. The woman is a freaking goddess! Her Sinners group isn't a fictional band to me. When I open the pages of Backstage Pass or Rock Hard (both books I devoured in a couple days and will be reading again) I feel like I have stepped into their world, and man oh man, I never want to leave. Fun, sexy, emotional, these books take you on one heck of a rollercoaster ride! And best of all? There's more to come! Rock Hard, book 2 of the series, just released and there are still 3 more books left to go (and dammit, I want them all now!) So if you haven't read them yet, what are you waiting for?

Okay, fine, I probably should try the soft sell first. Check out my interview with the very fab Olivia below and then run and not walk to your nearest print or e-tailer, because seriously, these books will rocket to the top of your TBR! And psst, for a limited time, Backstage Pass is FREE on Kindle. FREE! That's one sweet deal. Though just so you know, Sed is MINE. Yes, Cari SuxSedInHerDreams.


1. I loved Backstage Pass. Actually no, that's a lie. I ADORED Backstage Pass. I'm totally a music junkie and as much as I loved Myrna and Brian, what I enjoyed most was the interaction among the band members. Which band member did you come up with first?

Brian Sinclair, the lead guitarist. I didn’t intend for the book to lead to a series when I first started writing it. I knew I wanted to write about a lead guitarist and a professor who was studying groupies. The first scene that came to me was of this rock star drunk out of his mind in a hotel lounge and the professor (Dr. Myrna Evans) recognizing him. Then I wondered why he was drunk. Was he just having a good time? Nope, he’d just had his heartbroken. Why? He’d caught his girlfriend messing around with the lead singer. Oh look, Sed Lionheart, lead singer springs into the scene. And Brian is pissed at him. I don’t remember who came (*Freudian slip*) after that. The rest of the band were just sort of there and giving each other a hard time. About half way through writing Backstage Pass, I decided each of the guys of Sinners needed a book. Luckily, my publisher agreed.

2. Some of my best friends are very big fans of a certain group (*cough* Bon Jovi *cough*) and I'll admit I find the psychology behind “groupies” fascinating. I've read a little about your inspiration for the series but I'd like to hear more about it. Is it true groupies were what initially gave you the idea to write about the Sinners? (Though I think you called them “slutty girls” somewhere, LOL)

I was at an Avenged Sevenfold concert and the roadies were tearing down/setting up the stage between the opening band and the headliner. I love to people watch at concerts. So I watch these two “slutty girls” (if that’s what you want to call them) following this roadie around and trying to coerce him into a backstage pass. They were seriously harassing the poor guy. So I started wondering why they wanted to get backstage so badly. Meet the band? Party with the band? Sleep with the band? Did they think maybe one of the band members would fall in love with them? Man, someone needs to study the psychology of these women. *bing* Well, hello plot idea. Welcome to my brain.

3. Is Jace really as naughty as he seems? And yes, I need to know this ahead of time since there's no release date yet for the Sinners third book and I can't wait!

Jace? He’s a maniac in bed. His favorite game is to restrain his lover and make her beg. Not with pain (he likes to receive pain, but doesn’t like to inflict it), but by pleasuring and teasing her until she can’t take any more.

4. Do you have a favorite member of the band? I'd also say can you guess mine but since I've salivated all over your blog posts enough, it'd be an easy guess!

I love them all. I’m not saying that because I’m afraid I’ll hurt their feelings (they are fictional, after all). They’re all so different. I like variety. I love them for different reasons. Brian for his romantic streak. Sed for his possessiveness. Jace because he’s wounded and I want to fix him. Eric because he’s fun and loving. And Trey because he’s so comfortable in his skin and it’s some mighty sexy skin. So, who’s your favorite, Cari? And why?

Oh man, this is easy! Mostly, LOL. It's definitely Sed...lead vocalists are sexy. Especially growly, possessive lead vocalists that would move heaven and earth to get the woman they love to fall for them again. (Like that would be a problem...) But now that I've gotten my dose of Sed in book 2, I'm ready for Eric's book. He's fun and quirky and I can't wait to see the smart talker get brought down hard by a woman. Yep, I'm a sadist and I admit it! :D ~ Cari

5. So...circle jerks. Yeah, there's a phrase to cause some blushing. Do you find it easy to write about things that some people might be shocked to even read about?

Actually, it was a circle suck. LOL! (*Cari has to note here: what I type when at work doesn't count because it's always being written under possible threat of discovery! LOL) It doesn’t embarrass me to write about shocking things. It’s just a book. It’s fiction. It’s not biographical. I don’t have a circle suck party in my living room for research or anything. Hiding behind a pen name helps. Few people I interact with on a daily basis know that I’m an author. If they do know, I don’t let them read my books. I’d probably get embarrassed if they knew what I write. My grandmother read my book and said she needed some clarification on some of the “terms”. Uh, yeah. THAT was embarrassing. I never did clarify any terms for her.

6. What are you working on now?

I’m writing the final book in the Sinners on Tour series. Trey’s book. As soon as that’s done, I have a lot of editing and rewriting to do on the last three books of the series. A LOT of editing! I’m not a fan of editing... I’m also writing an epilogue to Backstage Pass. It includes Brian and Myrna’s wedding and their wedding not. It will be available soon. I’m self-publishing that one.

Thanks so much for visiting, Olivia! It's been so much fun! And when Olivia claims her rightful place on the New York Times bestseller list, we'll all have spoken and told publishers what we REALLY think about that old axiom that rock star heroes never sell!

Now it's your turn. Show Olivia or the boys some love...just as long as you remember Sed's mine. Hmm, wonder if I can get a subliminal track to run when someone clicks on the blog...

Want to get Backstage Pass FREE? You know you do! Go HERE. And then since I know you'll need to read Rock Hard right after, you can find it HERE.

Visit Olivia at her website HERE and her blog HERE. Or check out Sinners amazing band site HERE.