Interview With An Author: Blue Saffire

A few weeks ago, a book dropped. Big deal, right? Well, yeah, except when I see my Goodreads and Facebook timeline blowing the hell up! That makes me pause and take notice. And maybe even click to see what all the hype is about. Let’s just say I was not disappointed. At all. In fact, I was so in my feels, that I had to reach out to this lady named Blue Saffire to have a lil fangirl moment, and to beg ask for an interview. She graciously and humbly accepted, so without further ado, Meet Blue Saffire!

Musings:Blue Saffire, thanks so much for taking the time to speak with me. The first question I have been dying to ask since I discovered you is that name! Tell us how you became “Blue Saffire”!

Blue Saffire: When my mother passed in 2007 I started having dreams filled with Blue Sapphires, rings, crowns, shoes, etc. My mom also appeared in those dreams as if she was trying to give me a message.

My mom supported me in everything I wanted to do. If I came home and said I wanted to go to clown school she would have found the best clown school there was and enrolled me. We just would have figured out how to pay for it and keep me there somehow. I’ve modeled, gone to school for fashion, recorded an album, and she supported me through it all. I was a bit lost after losing her so having the dreams really started to help me find my way.

I decided to go with Blue Sapphire for a pen name, but when I went to get the domain name, email, and all of that, Sapphire spelled the right way was not available. I decided to go with the Saffire spelling because I thought it was a nice play on the name and it was something my mother and I would have come up with. She was just cool like that.

Musings: Describe your writing process. Are you are a researcher, or do you write in a stream of consciousness where the thoughts come to you and you just go with it?

Blue Saffire: Once again I am a dreamer. So my stories usual start from my movie like dreams. From there I can sit for hours with the movies building and playing out in my mind. I like to build outlines of the scenes that play out and I work through my outlines. I am the queen of post cards and post its, LOL. It works for me and keeps me on track.

Music is a big part of my process. It can set a mood for me. I do research little things that pop in my head that I want to get right so I don’t sound foolish. Even if I have a concept of how something works, I want to know the working of it in detail. For example, the Jacob’s Latter that Wyatt has. I wanted to make sure I researched that process and the benefits and pitfalls of having one. What Nellie could expect and what it would be like for him.

Timelines are a big thing for me too. Being that all my books link to one and other in some way, I have timelines all over the place to make the books fit. Then there are times when I do just go with the flow. I get in a zone, with a smile on my face I just let it out. I like to say my books talk to me and honestly they do. They will wake me up with where the characters want to go next and what they want to do. It may sound crazy, but it works as well.

Musings: Are you a full-time writer? Does writing come naturally or were you motivated by another author or certain event?

Blue Saffire: I guess you can say I am a full time writer. However, it is not my only venture at the moment. I have always wanted to write. I remember writing songs and poems in elementary school. As I mentioned the passing of my mother changed a lot for me. I worked in ministry for a few years before I felt in my spirit it was time for me to branch out. Yes, that’s right, ministry,

LOL. It was on me hard to write my books. For me, Spirit began to teach me that everything in life is ministry. It doesn’t always look like the man in a suit or robe in the pulpit. A stripper in the club is ministering to someone, a husband that has lost his way and needs to see his way back home, a young woman that thinks there is such a thing as easy money, but learns there is more work to the twerk than she thought, heck she can learn she is better off writing books from the stories she learned. Books that will help some other young woman take a different path. When I started my own ministry I thought it would be something totally different from where it is heading, but I am big on literacy and that is where my ministry is heading.

I am a big believer in demonstration. We are to demonstrate God, so I write to demonstrate while sharing my talents. I think it is better to live and show, than to try to beat someone over the head with your beliefs. Like I said everything is ministry. Someone is reading my books right now and being healed of something, a broken heart, poor choices, boredom, a deep loss. I had one woman email and say that Legally Bound 3 sparked a fire in her marriage. You can find healing and growth in anything and I am just happy to share my gifts to provide just that.

Musings: Do you write strictly IR (interracial) romance or are you multi-genre author?

Blue Saffire: Blue Saffire happens to just be one of six pen names of mine. While Blue writes more IR romance I like to stretch my wings in other areas. My niece is so cute and asked me what I do for a living because she never sees me go to work outside like everyone else. When I told her the things I do for a living she told me I have make believe jobs. I asked her what she meant and she said real people are not authors, musicians, consultant, etc. She said that she didn’t know anyone that did what I do. I laughed because she is eight and I can see this all from her eyes. I then took her online to saw her, my book on Amazon. She then asked me if I would write her a book, long story short. I have written a children’s book as well and just need a good illustrator to bring her book request to life.

So, yup, I write in multiple genres, YA, Children’s, Self–help. I don’t like to call my other romance books urban because they are not your typical urban romances. They are African American and Latino characters, but it is not your everyday urban lit. I tell real life stories.

Musings: Are you a serial writer by nature, or do you have a stand alone or two planned in the future?

Blue Saffire: I like Blue Saffire as a serial author. One of my other pens has more of a standalone focus.

Musings: Do you self-publish or are you affiliated with a publishing house?

Blue Saffire: I self-publish. I am big on being my own boss.

Musings: What’s your take on the state of IR romance today? We (as if I write…) seem to be the bastard child of the romance genre, yet I see this as a flourishing moneymaker that everyone is dipping into now.

Blue Saffire: You know, everyone wants to run where the money is, but quality is King. As a reader myself, I won’t just read anything because it is IR and I feel like this genre sometimes get the short end of the stick with individuals thinking they can treat the reader like a check and not a person looking for an escape, an outlet, something good in the mist of crappy everyday life. I’m no one’s bastard and will never be treated like one. I don’t write to compete. I write what I like and share it for others that enjoy it as well. If you look at the Amazon author ranks I have jumped over a lot of authors in the mainstream genres, including E.L. James. I am number two and four at the time of this interview in the Most Popular Authors in Erotica categories. Color has no bearing on talent.

I hope this is what my characters convey as well. They may be of all shades and forms, but they love just the same. They have issues, no matter what their color is and they live those issues out before us on the pages. I have learned that if you’re to be successful, an idea has to be in your DNA. If you are not original with it, it will never work. So for those that are dipping in just for a buck, we won’t see them around for long. My fellow authors that write because they love, live, and breathe this, we will always support them because we feel them in their work. Quality breeds respect not your niche. So in due season we will see IR books getting respect because we are growing in quality, not quantity.

Musings: Tell us about the Brothers Black! This is how I initially discovered you, and when I read the synopsis, I was like WHOAAA!!! Seven brothers?! Do you plan to publish all seven books this year?

Blue Saffire: You will find I am very ambitious. I have five books slated just for the first quarter of this year. God willing I will stay on target, which will allow me to get the majority of the other six brothers out this year if not all. They are all already telling me their stories so I want to get them out, LOL.

Brothers Black started with me seeing Wyatt in the bar with Nellie slapping her butt, LOL. All I could see was this tall golden eyed guy with swag, confidence, and piercings. I was hooked. I didn’t know their story would get as deep as it did with the tears and emotions involved, but like I said in the acknowledgements at the end of the book. This book became a little (lot) personal for me. I had a least three versions I started and then erased and started over. You never know how great your man is until you go through something and you see how he sees you through it.

I had so much fun with this book once I stopped fighting with it. I loved the family’s humor and I loved how they were there for each other. Nellie is so much like me. I may let you poke at me and be silent, but I snap quickly when you pick on my family and loved ones, LOL. Why not seven brothers they are all so beautiful, yum. I can’t wait to watch them grow, love, and tell their stories.

Musings: What else can we look forward to from Blue Saffire this year?

Blue Saffire: Blue will take over the world. Hahahahaha!

No seriously, I am currently wrapping up Legally Bound 4. I will be ending that Series with book 5 in the second quarter of the year. Hush 2 is next and that is playing out like a movie in my brain daily. I can’t wait to get started on it. You all will get answers about Shannon and Luca as well as find understanding as to why Luca is the way he is. I also see him transforming in front of our eyes. Uri and Val will be back and we are going to get some answers that everyone thought I left out or forget about. Oh boy, will there be action. Nico will be appearing in Hush 2 as his story will be up next in Ballers 2.

Brothers Black 2 will follow Ballers 2, and you all will get a taste of one more brother. That will be followed by a new Series, Yours. I plan to release all installments of Yours back to back. I feel it is a must for this story. There is a deeper story to be told and it won’t work in one book, but I don’t want to drag out a cliffhanger. I have a few other ideas swimming in my head so you never know what will come forth.

I am having fun writing. I want to continue to grow with each book. I think I am doing that so far. I look forward to growing the Blue Saffire brand and I have a few ideas in the back of my head to really enhance the reader’s Blue experience. My ultimate dream and secret heart’s desire would be to see these words come to life on screen. So some part of this year will be focusing on making that a reality in my future.

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Whew! Thank you Blue Saffire! I love the hustler in you! Connect with Blue Saffire today, and be sure to check out her latest, Brothers Black, Wyatt The Heartbreaker. He and Nellie are one of my insta faves.

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