HH: Teri, welcome to TRS BLUE. Please tell me Jaguar Moon: Scent of a Mate.

TA: Hi, Holly. Jaguar Moon is the first in a series built around a world of hybrid shifters. The Coalition of Shifters allowed their strongest to be bred, in order to create a race powerful enough to defeat the vampire. They realized their mistake quickly, but by then it was too late. The man they'd put in charge had his own agenda, and set about creating his own race of people, where he would be the ultimate ruler. Twenty-five years later, they are still paying for that mistake.

In order to right that wrong, Miakoda and Devante must put aside their prejudice and join two worlds that have spent a lifetime hating each other. To fail means the extinction of two races, the hybrids and the jaguars. To succeed means they are bound to each other, a terrible fate for a pureblooded jaguar and a mixed breed.

HH: Yours is a unique take on feline shifters. Where did you get the idea for this amazing story?

TA: The first spark came when I was doing research on jaguars. I stumbled across an old article about leopons (leopard and lion mix) being bred in Japan. Curious, I looked deeper and found where several hybrid cats had been bred in captivity. Unfortunately, not always with success. It saddened me, and I began to wonder how the majestic cats felt about what humans were doing to their species. The rest just fell into place.

HH: What sort of research did you do to bring this story to life?

TA: Tons! Starting with Belize, the Maya Mountains and the ancient Maya people carried through to their culture today. Jaguar people actually once existed and used the pelt of the cat in order to mentally become the animal. From there, I studied the characteristics of each cat in order to determine which feline families could produce successful breeding, and what the outcome of such a match would mean. Studying all of the information I could find on hybridization of the large cats also helped, giving me actual cases where the inter breeding had been done.

HH: What did you enjoy most about writing this story?

TA: I enjoyed learning each character, finding out what unique traits their inter breeding had produced. It was fun creating the world my characters live in, and living in that world with them while I was writing the story.

HH: What challenges did you face?

TA: Not letting the research bog me down, for one. Keeping the characters true to their animal while they remained true to their human ancestors was also challenging.

HH: What are you working on now?

TA: I've just finished the first draft of a story based on a Cherokee legend and two detectives who are trying to stop a serial killer. I'm also working on Malcolm's story from Cravings and it's about half finished. And I've just started writing Scent of the Enemy, which will be the second book to Jaguar Moon.

HH: What do you enjoy about being a writer?

TA: Writing that first chapter, the excitement of wondering where it will end up. I start each story with a very loose plot, and let the story dictate its own course. And I never write the last scene until I'm happy with the rest of the book, usually after most of the editing is complete. By then I normally know how it will end, but once I write that final scene the story is finished for me. I've learned the hard way that once it's done my muse packs up and moves on, leaving me behind to clean up the mess.

HH: When and where do you feel you do your best work?

TA: Oddly enough it's at the most inconvenient time. The drive to work in the morning is about thirty minutes, and it's where I come up with ideas and work through plot problems. It's scary how many times I've looked up and been pulling into the parking lot. I've recently purchased a mini recorder to cut down on trying to scribble notes while I'm driving. As to when I actually sit down and write, it's mostly at night after the kids are tucked in. Winter is wonderful because everyone tends to wind down early with the time change, and winter is normally a very productive time for me.

HH: How will you spend the holidays this year?

TA: Our family is in town, so we'll stay close to home. Christmas Eve with the in-laws, Christmas day with my family. My schedule is so busy I end up shopping until the last minute, and when I'm done my brother usually tags me to help him.