Project Backlist- Mari Carr
Project Backlist: Start Your Journey with Mari Carr
Welcome to Project Backlist, Buzzing about Romance’s guide to must-read backlist books! This week, we’re spotlighting Marri Carr and her Italian Stallion Series.
Meet Mari Carr
Virginia native Mari Carr is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestseller of contemporary sexy romance and romantic suspense novels. With over two million copies of her books sold, Mari was the winner of the Romance Writers of America’s Passionate Plume award for her novella, Erotic Research. She has over a hundred published works, including her popular Wild Irish and Compass books, along with the Trinity Masters series she writes with Lila Dubois.
Get to know Mari
Becky: Can you share any writing rituals or habits that help you stay focused and productive during the writing process?
Mari Carr: I write each day with Lexi Blake and Lila Dubois, two amazing authors I call my co-workers. From noon to 4 each day, we fire up the Zoom, put our butts in the chair, and write our books. We do 25-minute sprints with 5-minute breaks in between, where we chat or refill the iced tea glasses. Having set writing hours has made me way more productive because—left to my own devices—I can find a million reasons not to write. Knowing Lexi and Lila are waiting for me makes me accountable. Plus, it makes a fairly solitary career less lonely.
Becky: Romance readers often have strong preferences when it comes to tropes (such as enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, etc.). Do you have a trope you love to write, and if so, what about it appeals to you?
Mari: My favorite tropes are actually opposites. I love friends to lovers, but I also adore enemies to lovers, and I’ve written quite a few stories in both. All of my books feature alpha heroes who fall fast and hard. I’m also a huge fan of big families, which I’m sure comes as no surprise to anyone. I’ve created quite a few big family series, including Wild Irish, Italian Stallions, and Sparks in Texas.
Becky: What is one thing you want your readers to take away from your books when they are finished?
Mari: My primary goal is to provide my readers with a happy escape. The world is hard enough, so my stories tend to be light on conflict, heavy on romance, steamy sex, and humor. I tried to create families that readers want to be a part of and offer them a safe place to hang out for a little while.
About the Italian Stallion Series:
Becky: What inspired you to write your earliest novels? Were there any particular themes or tropes you were drawn to?
Mar: I sat down and wrote my first book after I ran out of stories to read at my favorite e-book publishers. I discovered steamy romance before e-readers were a thing, so I actually sat at my computer to read! I was a voracious reader, so when I’d run through all the menages I could find, I started to think…I should write my own story. I’d always had the urge to write, but between kids and a day job, I’d never made the time for it. When I mentioned that desire to my husband, he encouraged me to go for it. Erotic Research was the result, and I was delighted when Samhain Publishing offered a contract for it. It’s been a wild and wonderful ride since then.
Becky: How do you feel your writing has evolved from your first release to your most recent books?
Mari: Well, most importantly, I hope my writing has improved. With 150 books under my belt, I’d like to think my craft has grown as I have. When I first started writing, novellas were the hot ticket (I mentioned that we all had to read on our computers, right?), but nowadays, I tend to write a lot longer novels because I enjoy fully exploring my characters and their road to romance.
Becky: Which of your characters in this book or series are you most proud of, and what makes them stand out to you?
Mari: When I first plotted the Italian Stallions series, my focus was on the Morettis. Then…those three broken Russo brothers appeared and man, they totally stole my heart. I teared up writing all three of their books because they needed those happily ever afters!
Becky: How do you approach balancing standalone novels with series? Do you find it easier to revisit characters in a series, or do you prefer writing new stories?
Mari: I love writing standalones within a series because I’m never ready to say goodbye to any of my characters. It’s fun to be able to show them after their HEA in the next books.
Becky: What was the most challenging book in this series to write, and what did you learn from the experience?
Mari: Steady and Strong nearly broke me. I’ve always leaned more toward the pantser approach to writing, but after deleting nearly 20K words (omg -that hurt), I have retrained myself and am proud to now call myself a plotter!
Becky: Do you ever see yourself revisiting (second gen or expanding) on this series/story’s characters in future projects?
Mari: I love second gen stories. I did a next generation for my Wild Irish series with Wilder Irish, and I’d love to do the same for Italian Stallions. The Moretti and Russo men would make incredible fathers and it would be awesome to explore that.
Thank you so much to Mari Carr for taking the time to answer our questions. Happy Reading!
