Yes, I write under many names: Megan Crane, Caitlin Crews, M.M. Crane, and Hazel Beck. But no matter the name, the story is always all mine. Why do I write under a variety of names? I have Reasons.
I discovered my first romance novel at the age of twelve in a bargain bin at the local five and dime. It involved swashbuckling pirates having grand adventures on the open sea, a heroine with a mind of her own, and a seriously masterful hero who swept her away no matter how clever she was.
I was immediately smitten with romance and all the romantic themes I could get my hands on. (I still am.)
I had grand plans to star on Broadway — preferably in Evita, just like the great Patti LuPone. Sadly, my inability to wow audiences with my singing voice required a back up plan, so I launched myself into academics instead. This was not a good fit for someone who liked lounging about and reading books a lot more than dissecting them in classrooms, but it did allow me to live in England for half a decade, so I can’t complain.
Writing (and finishing!) my first book was a relief. And actually publishing that book was one of the greatest thrills of my life.
Now I’m more than 100 books in, I’m still a romance fanatic, it still thrills me to see my books on shelves, and yes, I’m still plotting my Broadway debut.
If you’re new to my books, try starting here.
If you are looking for information for journalistic/editorial purposes, view my media kit.
How did you go from writing Chick Lit (aka Rom Coms) to Romance?
You can actually read the book I wrote that bridged the two!
After I wrote my chick lit novels and before it even occurred to me to try to write straight romance, I wrote a weird book about a woman who travels back in time to 1987 to meet the man of her teenage dreams, rock star Tommy Seer. I Love the 80s is my hybrid book, falling somewhere between the two. I’m always going to love it, though I think the fact that it’s a little bit chick lit and a little bit romance is obvious– and maybe its weakness as much as its strength? Your call.
I want to know Aunt Jen’s story from I Love the 80s! What happened to her?
I’ve had Aunt Jen’s story in my head for a long time.
Think: the 90s. Grunge-era Seattle, which is a personal passion of mine as I was at a Very Impressionable Age when grunge swept the nation…
One of these days I hope to get a chance to write it!
I don’t understand the family in Once More with Feeling. Who would act like that?
One of the things I wanted to explore in Once More With Feeling was this notion we all have that, if called, we’d be heroes. We’d race into the burning building, we’d jump in front of the bullet, we’d save the child. And what I love about this world is that when the big things come at us, yes, I believe we do the right thing more often than not.
But it’s the small things that trip us up. The everyday opportunities to stand up for each other and do the right thing no matter if it’s hard or if it makes people uncomfortable or if doing it makes our lives a little less easy than they would be if we did nothing. In my experience, most people go to great lengths to avoid conflict and tend to get angry at the person who refuses to go along with that, not necessarily the person who caused the conflict in the first place.
I completely understand if Sarah’s family upset you. They were supposed to upset you. They upset me, too.
I love pictures. I take a lot of them.
Interviews
And here are some other items of note:
- Video: A fun Valentines Day interview on 5 Things Friday.
- Video: The Gregory Mantell Show, it's not super new, but I'd still say all the same stuff on the subject of Frenemies.
- Caitlin discusses The Return of the Di Sione Wife with BookTrib.
- Video: My Process (as Megan and Caitlin, on Conversations with Cupid)
- Podcast: Action and Emotion (as Megan, with my husband Jeff, on the Nerd Out podcast)
- On Shame and the Romance Heroine (as Caitlin, on Dear Author)
- Falling in love with the Rodeo (as Megan, a guest on Jane Porter's blog)
