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FOR HIS EYES ONLY 2008 Daphne Du Maurier finalist.

INTERVIEWS

INSIDE THE WRIT'ER'S MIND
Carol Ann Erhardt interviews Evan and Shawn

COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS.

WHAT IS THE SECRET TO A SUCCESSFUL COLLABORATION?
That’s easy. The right partner. Piece of cake. Right? Sure! Collaborating is like any other relationship. There is give and take, mutual respect, and a genuine liking for one another. In our case, like two stars inexorably drawn into a revolution around one other, our collaborative efforts revolve around each other. Will he like this, will she like that? The anticipation of the other's response imbues our drafts with a unique passion.

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH EGOS?
Not being in love with your own words is the key here. Being in love with your partner’s words is a real plus. ROFL. If you're lucky enough to find such a partner, you've hit the jackpot.

WHAT STARTED IT ALL?
We met at an online writers’ group four years ago, and began our writing partnership on a lark. That ‘lark’ became the published short story “The Pickle, My Little Friend”—a second place top pick in Preditors and Editors 2005 Reader’s Choice poll—and has evolved into the paranormal suspense novel, Knot of the Slain, the romantic thriller FOR HIS EYES ONLY, and the in-progress NASCAR-themed romantic suspense novel, FULL THROTTLE. Six more novels are planned, and a short romantic paranormal suspense series is in progress.

WERE YOU FRIENDS FIRST?
We knew each other about six months when we wrote The Pickle My Little Friend. Because this short story was for fun, there wasn’t any pressure or anticipation of publication or future collaborations. We enjoyed the experience so much, and liked the results well enough to try what we then thought was another short story. That short story, Knot of the Slain, quickly evolved into a novel, and is about two-thirds into completion.

IS COLLABORATING BETTER THAN WRITING ALONE?
No. Both present unique challenges. In the final analysis, all novels are collaborations of a sort. Between critique partners, reader input, agents and editors, a literary piece is influenced by a dozen factors. The only difference with a more direct collaboration is there are two gods in that universe, instead of one. We are equal opportunity dictators.