What turned into Merrick actually started out as a kind of evil little piece of erotica. I wanted to do something with an older master-of-a-trade and a young apprentice, and I wanted it to be sort of medieval and atmospheric with lots of sly, spooky details -- cast iron, stone hearths, smokes and shadows. I was thinking the master had to be an alchemist or an apothecary, and sexually potent in some elusive, maybe even alarmingly inexplicable way.

I should have known right away it wasn't going to be a >10k erotica piece. I was way too into it from the start (and I've never felt totally comfortable with the erotic quickies, anyway -- I'm not good at it).

The story surprised me a lot as it went along. I had intended to build a complex atmosphere around fairly conventional characters, with Merrick as the cranky-alpha-with-a-soft-side, and William as the young, world-weary street rat who finds himself in a HURRICANE OF DESIRE.

That all fell apart promptly when I realized Merrick and William were two calm, respectful gentlemen, with an intellectual chemistry between them that struck me as so sensual and special that I found myself really wrapped up in every interaction they had.

And I had to force myself to take a break before starting the sequel! Things are getting underway now -- lots of fun and challenges (for me) in store. Theo is still lurking around, waiting to make sure Merrick turns William into a vampire. Merrick is still horrified by the whole thing, but he can't stay on his high horse forever. It seems to me the time for Merrick to sacrifice himself for William's humanity is long gone -- W. and Theo scored a real checkmate, and his instincts have surely won at least a narrow majority over his morals at this point -- so I don't know how long he intends to delay the inevitable, or what he thinks will be gained by it. I have a feeling Merrick's stubborn side could get a little irritating, despite the fact that he's 100% justified in wishing he could just leave William alone.

But William's experience is really the important thing here. If Merrick is a moralist (and Theo is a hedonist), William is a pragmatist. He uses his head, and he adapts to make the best of his circumstances. I can picture William sitting in the corner of a coffee house, idly dipping his fingertip into his drink as he mulls over the pros and cons of being a vampire. In the end, of course, he will accept the inevitable. Will he be cool with it, though? I don't know that he will. His mother would absolutely disapprove, for one thing! But beyond that, he really stands to lose a lot. William enjoys his friends, his work, and his sunny days. And he likes people! Will love be enough to hold him steady when he realizes how many lives he's going to take in order to save Merrick's? I doubt it! Clearly, William's not going into this without reservations, but he's going to feel a lot of pressure to hide them from Merrick.

Here's where Theo might have a much bigger part to play. I'm sure he has more than a few tricks up his sleeve, but it remains to be seen whether he has the political finesse to coax this little opera to its resolution. Or maybe he'll just get bored of the whole thing, stab William in the jugular, and toss him at Merrick's head. "THINK FAST!" Hahaha.

So that's where my thoughts are -- I've got some pages tossed around, and I can't to see things start rolling.

Again, thank you so much for your attention, and especially those of you who took the time to write reviews. I'm so grateful to you for giving this new publisher a chance and making Merrick a success. Wish us luck!