Introducing Delilah Night: Author of Love is a Virus

One of the best things to come out of working on an anthology like Coming Together (aside from the feeling of doing awesome things for charity) is the friendships that I've gained through the process. Delilah has become one of my darling Facebook Friends (she lives in Asia, so it's not like we can get together for coffee, although that would be cool...) and I'm really pleased to be able to introduce you to her today. 

What are your greatest challenges in your writing career?

The biggest challenge to my writing career is struggling to balance writing and parenting.  Do I go grocery shopping while they’re both at school, or do I write and accept the karma that comes from making that choice (two children both fighting over who gets to sit where in the grocery cart and then complaining when I put groceries in there with them). When my three year old won’t stay in bed, I can easily lose an hour of writing time putting her back down. Sometimes after a day of parenting, I’m exhausted and my brain can’t do anything more complex than stare at Netflix.


Of your published works, do you have a favorite? Why?

Of my published stories, I’d have to say my favorite is “Love is a Virus,” and not just because it’s in Among the Stars.  I really like the eroticism of playing with power dynamics, and I love Saanvi and Lily. I love the kind of ending that changes part or all of what you think you know about the story.


Do you ever want to go back and edit an older story?

I can’t read “Renewal,” which was my first professional sale. While it’s a story that means a lot to me emotionally—a couple trying to find the spark again after becoming parents drew heavily from my own experiences—my writing style has evolved a lot in the past four years. When I recently tried to read it, I desperately wanted to pick up a red pen.

How much of your life and the people you know end up in your work?

A lot of my experiences have ended up in stories. Not necessarily the sex, but the little details. In an upcoming story “Petticoats and Push-Up Bras” my main characters work at the Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum, which I did in college. I’m in an interracial marriage, and you’ll notice that increasingly my characters are too. A scary encounter with a monkey in Cambodia has been written into my WIP set in Siem Reap.

What projects are you currently working on? Are you willing to share a small excerpt from a work in progress?

My current major project is a novella set in Siem Reap, Cambodia.  RJ and Meg are ex-lovers who broke up six years ago. She thinks they’re having one last fling. He wants to win her back. Will he succeed, or are the wounds from the break-up too deep to overcome?

Since I just mentioned it, here’s part of the scene with the monkey. It’s a first draft section I haven’t edited yet, so please excuse the rough edges.

The man on the motorbike offered Meg a grape to give to the baby, who had now hopped from the bike back to the ground. She thanked him and gently held it out to the tiny monkey just as the motorbike rider had.

“That’s not a good idea. You should warn your lady,” Darany said. “Miss—”

A large monkey bared massive fangs, hissed, and reached for Meg’s grape. She shrieked and dropped it, stumbling back and away from the far less adorable adult.

“Weren’t you the one who handed me that book? No touch monkey and other travel lessons learned too late?” RJ forced his tone to remain calm even as adrenaline pumped through his body.

“Thanks for the reminder.” Warily, she looked at the large monkey. It had devoured the grape she’d dropped and was now scavenging for other food. She swallowed, squared her shoulders, and lifted her camera again. Meg gave the big monkey a dirty look, turned, and began to shoot the baby once more.

After a few minutes she spoke again. “I would’ve been fine. Probably.”

Delilah Night  is an American expat who doesn’t miss shoveling snow now that she lives near the equator.  She does, however, miss Target and Panda Express (and of course her friends and family). While her love of science fiction was inspired by “The Trouble With Tribbles,” it was Wesley Crusher of TNG who inspired her to begin writing erotica.  You can find her stories in Coming Together:Among the Stars, Other Days, Summer Loving, and Nine-to-Five Fantasies among others.