KRESLEY COLE

If I could sum up 'Shadow's Claim' in six words: cage fights with hot alpha males. Seriously, though, while the fights are the backdrop for Trehan and Bettina's love story, the main emphasis is on how Trehan - a pitiless master assassin - wages the ultimate battle to win her heart.

I write what I like to read, and I enjoy love triangles in YA and adult fiction - not to mention in other media like TV, opera, theatre, and even in video games! I relish when dark and compelling characters compete for our protagonist's heart. The doubts, the uncertainty - the jealousy! - can be breathtaking.

Before the final battle in 'Poison Princess,' Evie remembered how to use her Empress powers, practiced with them to the point of exhaustion, then had a trial by fire. In a way, she earned those powers, as she hadn't before, so that was certainly a confidence builder.

I enjoy a good cliffhanger. As a reader, I relish that nervous feeling you get when you're engrossed in a story, but in the back of your mind you're aware that there aren't that many pages left. How will it end? Everything can't be wrapped up! This can't end! Then it does, and your heart seems to stop.

I always favor the hero and heroine from whichever book I've completed most recently. Yes, I'm faithless and fickle!

As the installments in the 'Immortals After Dark' series span simultaneous timelines, making sure the details remained accurate was a hair-raising/losing exercise.

I've been a huge fan of all things paranormal my whole life. For me, it was always a question of when, not if, I was going to write a paranormal series. I dipped my toe in the genre by incorporating a mystical curse into the 'MacCarrick Brothers Trilogy.'

In 'Dark Skye,' I rewrote every one of the Pandemonia scenes over and over before I was happy with them - hundreds of pages are now sitting in a folder called 'Cuttings,' never to be read. Ouch!

My husband, a.k.a. Swede, and I both come from athletic backgrounds, so once we identified the goal - get book published - we attacked it. At any given time, I would have my writing out in 25 various forms - either contests, mentoring critiques, agent/publisher queries, etc.

My toughest criticism usually comes from myself. As my editor can attest to, I'm never done tweaking a book until the production department has to rip it from my hands!

One of my favorite things to do is formulate powers for a character, then come up with their corresponding weaknesses and liabilities. And I delight in world-building: melding the supernatural with the natural, then tweaking and polishing until it feels organic.

The one test I have for every completed book is if I feel head over heels in love with the hero. If he hasn't stolen my heart from the previous hero, I know the book isn't right.

Never run from one such as me, female. You will no’ get away - and we like it.

Fate has a way of getting what she wants, no matter how we try to avoid it.

My looks had gone from well-kempt cheerleader to apocalyptic disasterpiece.

Two things that can never be contained? Velociraptors and zombies.

And speaking of females, if I call you by one's name while my fangs are plunged deep in your neck, just run with it.

Rydstrom: "To get it right this time."

There was French kissing, and then there was Cajun French kissing. Spicier, harder, wilder.

Those who betray me only do so once.

Lothaire:Hate scars. I'm physically flawless--why can't everyone be? Everywhere Lothaire went, people stopped and stared. Of course, then they usually ran.

He gave her an indulgent look. "I'll forgive these rash words for now." She sputtered, "Forgive? Let's talk about who should be forgiving who.""Whom," he corrected."Shut up! I'm in the right here. Remember all those things you did to me?"

I take no actions that I wouldn't publicly recount. If you can't speak your deeds, then don't do them.

I got nothing. Even the spies I'm spying on who are spying on other spies got nothing.

Remember my titles? I don't get poisoned,I do the poisoning.I'm the princess of it.