Heidi Cullinan Interview
June 8, 2011
24 Comments
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Today I’m interviewing Heidi Cullinan who writes contemporary and paranormal books.
Here’s part of Heidi’s bio:
Heidi Cullinan is the award-winning author of six novels and two novellas, and her short stories have been published in several anthologies.
Heidi has always loved a good love story, provided it has a happy ending. She enjoys writing across many genres but loves above all to write happy, romantic endings for LGBT characters because there just aren’t enough of those stories out there. When she isn’t writing, Heidi enjoys knitting, reading, movies, TV shows on DVD, and all kinds of music. She has a husband, a daughter, and too many cats.
Heidi also volunteers frequently for her state’s LGBT rights group, One Iowa, and is proud to be from the first Midwestern state to legalize same-sex marriage.
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Hi Heidi and welcome to the site. I’m so pleased to interview you. Since this is your first visit would you like to tell the readers a little bit about Heidi over and above what is on your official bio?
This is the author version of that old interview saw “tell me a little about yourself,” isn’t it.
Let’s see. Like most writers, I tend to live a life polar opposite in glamour to the one my characters do. I live in a nice mid-sized town in the middle of Iowa where generally the most exciting part of my day is when I go to the store to get milk or fetch my daughter from school. I have a lot of cats, though less than I used to as I lost two to (two different) cancers last year. We’re down from five to three, and as we’re still recovering from the financial whallop that is cancer AND one of the remaining amigos has developed asthma, I think we’re staying with a trinity for the time being.
I knit, though less lately as my chronic pain thing that doesn’t have a name (we call it Princess and the Pea Syndrome) keeps getting into my arms and I need to save my hands for typing. When I do knit I prefer socks (top to toe) and very no-nonsense things that let my hands be busy while my mind wanders. I also enjoy following several astrologers as a sort of spectator sport, and I am a fair hand at Tarot. Have no particular religion, but I attend a Unitarian Universalist fellowship and was raised Lutheran (ELCA).
I’m also very tall. Very. Six feet, and I’m built to heave warships to the German shores. Which has some irony now as I have to ask my daughter to pick things up off the floor and unload the bottom rack of the dishwasher as I only get so many bend-overs a day before I turn into a potato.
How long have you been writing professionally and what do you think is the best and worst things about an author’s life?
How long professionally? Well, I was first published in late 2009, though I have been submitting and reading up about this insane business and going to writing conferences since 1999. Right about the time I started to get a handle on it, I gave birth to my daughter (2001), which occupied me a bit for some time. Then the very beginnings of my chronic condition started, which was also distracting, and then the condition started to color my muse, which messed things up significantly. I think I’d have done better if I’d just followed where it led, but I kept trying to be a good girl and write like New York wanted, which in hindsight was so very dumb, but it seemed so smart at the time. Everyone said “write from your heart,” but my heart seemed so dark and weird sometimes, and then very smutty, and then the gay men showed up and I had no idea what to do. So in 2007 I bailed off the Internet, wrote like hell, and ended up with The Seventh Veil, Hero, Special Delivery, and two others which aren’t quite done yet. I was on LJ but never really figured it out, so I didn’t know there were whole communities writing slash and m/m, so I thought I was the only one. Then I found out there was a genre and publishers and the whole works. I was floored. And now here we are.
The best thing in an author’s life for me is that I get to share the stories in my head with people and see them get excited about them too. That really is the best part, and it never gets old, trolling through Goodreads and seeing that someone connected with something I wrote. It’s also nice to be making a little money at it too. My husband is still boggling at the idea that after ten years of me doing little more than occasional substitute teaching I suddenly bring in regular paychecks.
The worst thing is that the business of publishing totally drags me down. Promo sucks so bad I can’t even tell you, and it takes so much time. The editing and the submitting and the whole thing is also crap. I’ve taken to cutting out whatever I can. Less social media, less groups. I love the interacting with readers part, but I’m a true introvert. Even Internet engagement drains me. Sometimes especially so. And it’s hard to keep up with everything. Also, having an agent and a publicist is a godsend. I know a lot of authors in epub think 
that’s nuts, but believe me, I’m pretty much grateful for them both daily. Agent, publicist, and my web guys. The sacred trio.
Also I cannot write fast enough for the number of stories in my head. It’s a constant problem.
In your writing career what one thing or person has had the most impact on you? How did this affect you personally?
A group called the Cherries. It started as Jennifer Crusie’s fan loop ten years ago on Yahoo, and it’s since spawned about fifteen spin-offs in forums and groups and blogs, and ironically, I hardly can keep up with any of them now, but the Cherries formed me more than anything. Jennifer Crusie has been a personal friend for a long time, and absolutely she’s been a huge formation of my concept of craft, but the Cherries as a whole have been even greater. Writers published and unpublished across several genres, all women except for a very few: they taught me etiquette, form, balance—everything. I can’t think of an aspect of my writing they haven’t influenced. And I have so many friends there, friends I can call up after years of silence and it’s like we just talked yesterday. The First Lady of the Cherries, a wonderful Harley-riding woman named Jill, coined the phrase “It Takes An Orchard.” I think that was the biggest lesson. You can’t do anything alone. You need your community, your family. They taught me what one was and how to make one. And how to keep it together when the shit hits the fan too. And the importance of a flask of whiskey at conferences.
As a writer, which stories do you most love to write? Why?
Gosh, I don’t know. All of them sounds lame, but it’s true. I’m excited about every one of them that gets legs enough to finish. Well, I guess I could say I’m pretty married to contemporary, historical, paranormal, and fantasy. I don’t have much time for horror or mystery. I can sort of fake it, but not really.
I would say I like best the stories that write themselves, that just come out in a single smooth narrative, but I do like the ones that try to kill me too. It’s nice when they alternate a bit and give me some space, but I do love them all.
I usually ask other readers to come up with questions whenever I’m interviewing an author, and Eden Winters, another author, has a number of questions for you:
Who or what inspired the very colorful character of Randy from Double Blind and Special Delivery? (Love him, btw.)
Ha. Randy just showed up. Bear in mind that by the time he first appeared (the voice on the CB in Special Delivery) I not only didn’t know he was on the radar but I was so stressed and freaked over that book that the only thing keeping me going was hot terror. More than anybody, though Roe Davis comes close, Randy is just there in my head talking, and I simply take notes. He showed up right when I thought I finally had that story figured out and fucked it up six ways from Sunday. Now, in his own book, he just dictated the whole thing end to end in a month, and that was that.
He is the character I usually say I’m most like, which is true. Except I am more scared of heights than Sam, and I am not going anywhere near a motorcycle.
Why Kylie?
Okay, so here’s the story. Special Delivery was initially supposed to be a 6000 word short. (Go ahead, laugh for a minute.) Then I thought maybe it would be a series of shorts. Then I gave up and admitted it was a novel. At the time the only places I knew that were taking anything m/m seemed to only want gay men that actually seemed like straight men but fucked other guys, and it was clear from the first shake of Sam Keller’s tush that he was a beautifully swishy twink. Plus I knew a lot of gay men, and even the ones who weren’t twinks had a definite feel about them, and they matched Sam more than a big beef stud. And all the gay men I knew were into music, and Kylie was toe to toe with Madonna in their book as gay icon. So to me it was a natural move. Plus there was such a lovely parallel with Kylie and Sam. Both are sweet and happy and full of sunshine but also highly sexual. I liked the thematic echo of a young man working to accept his love of sex with a pop princess who happily sang about the same.
Also, my husband has always loved her. He taught me to like her, and actually now I possibly like her more than him. We also just went to a concert of hers in Dallas, all three Cullinans—we and a horde of gay men from the DFW area. It was fabulous.
Is there any more Mitch and Sam coming our way?
Yes. I have two in my head, one half on paper, but it got stuck and then I also got busy. I just got back from another visit to Mitch’s hometown, which is the setting for the one in process. I don’t know how many more of that cast I can do, but I hope it’s a lot. They’re so fun to write. Though I suspect they will take longer and longer to do, as there’s now so much to keep going in my head about them. Or maybe not. It all depends on Randy, I’m sure.
What stories are you currently working on?
At this exact second I’m trying to finish a historical m/m set in early Victorian London about a prostitute and a marquis’s second son who has a debilitating stammer. (I started this before I knew about The King’s Speech.) I also have GOT to get my ass in gear on the revision of the sequel to The Seventh Veil which is called Temple Boy and which is contracted for the fall. I also have another contemp novel set in Iowa and a short story set in LA that I need to do something with. And then there’s the handful of started projects that I can’t even think about plus the Wild Hair Project which may or may
not be a good idea but sure is fun.
Larissa has two questions for you
I want to know if there is a tradition or thing she does when a book is released.
When it’s released? That’s actually work. The tradition is to rush out a newsletter, cuss as I post to twitter, facebook, and my blog, update the website, email my publicist and ask what I’ve forgotten to do, and basically get no writing done for a week. But when I finish writing a novel, yes. I always play E.S. Posthumus’s “Odenall Pi” at full volume while I hug myself and grin like an idiot. And then usually I give myself some sort of treat, and then I realize that my house has turned into a sty, and so I clean it. There’s a rosy glow until EON sets in (End of Novel, also known as depression), and I hum and float through it.
Where do the ideas for her stories come from i.e inspiration?
Now that you’re an established writer do you do anything differently? Do you take risks with your characters or your plots that you didn’t before you had such a large fan base?
Well, I don’t know. I don’t think so. Mostly I do what the voices in my head tell me to do, and that’s only sort of a joke. For a while there it seemed to be that the stories got darker and darker and kinkier and kinkier, but that wasn’t on purpose. Usually I was gripping the sides of the iMac and trying to bargain with the muses, whining as I asked, “Why, WHY are you putting so much fisting into this nice book for Jan? WHY?” Then it all turned around, and now the theme seems to be not less sex but more sexual tension and less kink. I am one of those who doesn’t get the luxury of driving. I can’t follow a trend or jump on a bandwagon. Actually, I know of no one who can. But I might just be hanging out with people who think like I do, so 
who knows.
I understand that you are an advocate for GBLT rights, Heidi, and that you’re a volunteer for One Iowa which is the largest advocacy organization in your state. What motivated you to work with One Iowa? In your charity work, what gives you the most satisfaction?
I went to a Des Moines Pride event a long time ago, stopped by their booth and put my name on their list, and it all kind of went nuts from there. We got very busy before the Supreme Court decision that granted the right of marriage to all Iowa couples, and now that every wingnut organization in the country that hates gays pours millions a month into the “family values” people trying to take that right away, we’re even busier. I’ve done everything from phone banking to interviews to hosting fundraisers to canvassing. But my favorite is going to lobby days at the statehouse where we talk to legislators. Usually they ignore you, but there’s something that feels so solid about participating like that. Also, I’ve met some amazing people.
OH. Wait, hold on. The best day ever was when I volunteered at the courthouse on the first day LGBT persons could marry in Iowa. All day long I watched men and women hold hands and approach the counter to file for their license to marry. And the offices were courteous and kind, and it was all so normal and awesome. It was wonderful.
I believe you have released 6 books with Dreamspinner and two with Loose-id. The one I love best is Hero which has garnered a lot of fans. Is there a back story or inspiration for this book?
Hero was originally supposed to be a 30K story about “a drink” which was a call to some Ellora’s Cave thing. I went way past the word count and didn’t think I wrote a story that fit them, so I gave that up early on. Originally it was supposed to be a short, funny story about a construction guy going into the wrong bar and the shapeshifter bartender has some fun at his expense, and then they would fall in love or something. In hindsight I don’t know what the hell that was supposed to be, but I think the muses just let me think it while they laid out what actually happened. Hero was one I sweated over, never knowing quite why the hell Morgan was a house or why kitsune and REALLY, why Bollywood? Eventually I gave up and just tried to get to the end, and then I did, and then I tried to polish it until it made sense. I’m blessed with betas who give great pointers, so I took their advice into consideration as well, and then all of a sudden I had a book. I found Dreamspinner, submitted it, and somehow missed that it would be in print as well, so I was stunned to find all of a sudden I had a real book coming. And that’s pretty much what there is to Hero.
Since writing is a solitary occupation how do keep yourself motivated to write as many books as you have?
I know it sounds trite and that everyone says it, but I honestly have been writing since forever. When I was little I didn’t write the stories down, but I played Barbies and Weebles and Fisher Price. I didn’t realize until I was older and I watched my littlest sister play that most people don’t make such epic, continued storylines with their toys. Mine were always sagas, and I could go for hours. When I got to be in junior high or so, one day the toys felt stupid in my hands, so I started writing the stories down. And I did it all the time, usually in class. (Looks just like taking notes.) And always, always, when I’m in the car or a long line or awake in bed, I tell myself a story. It just happens. So the motivation isn’t the issue. It’s just sort of this thing I do. If I don’t write for a long period of time, I feel hollow and out of sorts. In fact, I have more trouble reminding myself that real humans go out and watch movies and do things with people.
You have been interviewed on many occasions. Which question did you find the most difficult to answer? Why?
Huh. I have no idea! I’m kind of blabby and talk to fill spaces, in real life and on paper/pixels. So none really.
Um. This one?
What is the one bit of advice that you received which you believe helped you in your writing career?
To put the writing first. Not publishing, not sales, not who likes me for writing this or who hates me for it. To get rid of people who are toxic to the writing. People and communities. Not that the people are bad, but influences which are no longer helpful. It’s a nice center, and I use it from everything from drafting a work to not letting myself get caught up in following everybody and their dog on twitter. Writing is not a popularity contest, and it doesn’t have a big trophy at the top for anything. It’s a journey, a calling, or whatever you want to call it, and if something detracts from it, you should quietly (or abruptly) put that thing aside so it doesn’t keep you from what you came here to do.
What’s next for Heidi?
My next novel comes out July 26 from Loose Id, a contemporary m/m called Dance With Me. I’m continuing to work on the next Special Delivery series book called Better Than Love, finishing the second Etsey series book Temple Boy, and chasing around a few wild hair projects for fun.
What do you do for fun?
I’m kind of bad about that sometimes, honestly. I like to watch TV with my family, but NEVER when it actually airs. Don’t have cable: we watch on hulu and Netflix and rent things/buy them from amazon on demand. I enjoy Doctor Who, The Daily Show, Glee, Rosanne, Angel, Buffy, Firefly, and a whole score of movies. I do read too, though less than I would like. Otherwise I love to travel, especially in a car. Never on a plane, or at least not until they stop the security theatre and give me some leg room.
Thank you Heidi
Thank you, Wave!
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Heidi Cullinan’s Contact Information
email: heidi.cullinan@mac.com
Website: www.heidicullinan.com
Twitterhttp://www.heidicullinan.com:
http://twitter.com/heidicullinan
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Heidi-Cullinan/183482706246
Author Information
Wave
Madonna196
Bogusia
Larissa
Sirius
Thanks, I really enjoyed this interview as Special Delivery and the craziness that is Double Blind are two of my absolute favourites.
I have very few books that I think are just simply perfect and Special Delivery is one of them.
I ration myself rereading it!
Thanks Heidi and Wave.
That emoticon cracks me up! Glad you enjoy the books.
Hi Heidi and Wave great interview.
to Heidi for such successful books and looking forward to more. I have to agree with Raine, Special Delivery one of my most absolute faves. Just have them boys truck on down and visit me 
I’ll give the boys the memo.
For me its Double Blind – one of my absolute faves – great interview thank you.
looking forward to all the new stuff – and
may the cats be fit and happy forever!
“may the cats be fit and happy forever! ”
Bless you, bless you, bless you. Right now I”m watching Bingley wheeze all over with the asthma he’s supposed to be cured of. The fun never stops.
Randy is of course very pleased to see you like his book best. Has a sly smile on as he shuffles his cards.
Thanks a lot for this interview, it´s always a pleasure to get to know more about the authors we read
Thanks, Helena! Glad you enjoyed it.
I became a big Heidi Cullinan fan when I read Miles and the Magic Flute. I can’t wait to read more of your works, Heidi, and I enjoyed the interview.
Thanks, Tracey!
Hi, Susie! Glad the tarot was good! No worries, the book won’t anywhere. And you bet there will be HaMEMA NOLA posts!
Hello, Heidi! Another Iowa girl (I use that term girl *very* loosely!
) here. I believe I live about 45 minutes south of you. I know…what are the odds?
I do enjoy your writing and am so proud of you. I contacted you after I read “Hero” due to the Emporia, KS reference. I lived there briefly and I was in disbelief that a smallish city with a college and a meat-packing plant was referenced in a book. *Now* do you remember me?
I wish you continued success in your writing and legislative efforts, relief from your chronic pain, and a healthy family (which includes the kitties!)!! Will you be at the festivities this weekend? (Truly, I’m not a stalker or anything!
) I’m not able to go this year due to some family issues, darn it!
I totally remember you! Hello, hello! Good old Emporia.
You bet I’ll be at pride this weekend–Marie Sexton, Rowan Speedwell, ML Rhodes and Catherine Lundoff will be there too. We’ll be right across from the Saddle. Stop on by!
And thank you for the good wishes.
I’ll be out of town otherwise I would make a point of getting there!
Were you aware of the Drake survey through Survey Monkey? It doesn’t sound like it’s “for Iowans only”; they’re wanting to know peoples perceptions, thoughts, and knowledge re: Iowa’s SSM ruling. I’ve already put in my 2 cents worth……
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/drake_marriage_study
Well damn! Maybe next time.
I didn’t know about the survey–thank you! Now I’m going to pimp it on le twitter.
Hi Heidi!
Great interview! Wonderful learning more about you. There’s gonna be more Mitch and Sam! 
Whoot! Randy will make an appearance, right? Stir things up?
Yep! They all head down to McAllen from Iowa in a shit-brown conversion van.
Heidi, I just want to say thank you. Ever since I have read Hero, I fell in love with your writing, I think I have read everything you published and while I cannot say that I love all of your books equally, I certainly have my favorites, I have not read the book of yours that I have hated yet
. You do fairy tales so well, I loved Miles and Sweet Son. And Nowhere ranch was lovely if you ask me. I think one of my very favorites of your works is actually your short story in Necking. I think it was a great psychological sketch of relationship falling apart and guys trying to repair it, your story is the only one that I remember from that anthology after months I have read it. And I want sequel to Seventh veil, I really do 
Thank you again, I hope your pain will go away.
Thank you so much for all the kind words. You make me blush and want to give you a hug.
Damn, but I want the TSV sequel too. Now that I brought the naughty pirate in, I think things will move along nicely.
Great interview Heidi! I am so excited to hear about all the new things coming out (especially more Sam and Mitch!).
Thanks, hon!
Hi Heidi,
Thanks for the great interview and giving us an insight into your life and writing process…it’s always interesting to read how authors approach their work/art.
I loved “Nowhere Ranch” and hope maybe a sequel is in the future. Bought “The Seventh Veil” but have not had time to read it yet. I plan to check out your other stories also, i have some catching up to do!
The nice thing about stories is that they never go anywhere. They wait indefinitely.
So glad you liked NR, and hope TSV delivers too.