Q. Are the characters in X.O.P. real people you know?

A. Is it ever really possible to write pure fiction? All of the women in X.O.P. are created with the best and the worst qualities of friends and lovers. It's the real, raw details in their relationships that make them so believable and, frankly, lovable.

Q. When you're not writing (or "researching" for the next story) how do you spend your time?

A. Anna and I are the people who work hard in order to play harder. We travel extensively. When we are not at home, our time is divided between the beach and the city. That's when we do our most effective research.

Q. Where did the inspiration for your writing come from?

A. For many years, I looked for a collection of Bedtime Stories...not a novel comprised of hundreds of pages, but instead short, inspiring but to-the-point hot plots and characters. I wanted to read about real people with real issues, not awkward prose whose only purpose was to be the conduit to the sex. I couldn't find what I was looking for, so instead I wrote it.

Q. What is your favorite part about being an author?

A. Over the years, I have selectively shared my stories and characters with friends. Before publishing, my friends were my test subjects. Since then, and definitely today, my favorite part of being an author is the impact that I get to have on readers. When the stories they read really "work" for them, it makes me feel like my mission has been accomplished.

Q. What words best describe the real Grace?

A. I'd say the real Grace is both sassy and courageous. My friends often call me ballsy, which just makes me laugh. I need to invent the word for women equivalent to "ballsy". When I figure that out, it will be the title to my next book!