Let’s face it, for a writer, talking about her books and writing in general isn’t a hardship. The reassuring news was that everything would be edited and I could have a do-over if I needed it. There were two huge lights, one on either side of the camera, so I really couldn’t see much. I was seated on a high stool with one of those tiny microphones clipped to the neck of my blouse. Second, try to work the question into the answer, since only my voice is on the finished product. First, look at the camera, not at the person asking the questions. They told me I sounded fine, so at that point I took their word for it. To tell you the truth, I didn’t know exactly what I said until I saw the video. I’d thought of answers in advance, too, but that doesn’t mean I stuck to the script. A two-person team handled lights and camera while my publicist, with whom I’ve exchanged emails for ages but had never met until that day, read off the questions we’d prepared in advance. Simon and Schuster has their own mini-studio in the same building with their editorial offices. So, what you’ll see if you watch the interview is the real me, wearing “business casual” with the stress on casual and looking the way I always do, except maybe a tad more neat. I certainly don’t think of myself as particularly photogenic! Nor am I the glitz and glitter type. In the past I’ve been interviewed on local TV news and been filmed presenting programs and on panels, but I haven’t had a lot of experience in front of a video camera. I have to admit to a little nervousness going in. Most of the time, it’s fun.īack in October, the week before Hurricane Sandy came to town, I made a trip to Manhattan to meet with my (well, okay, with Kate’s) editor at Gallery Books and to make a short promotional video to be used at the Simon and Schuster website to promote the most recent Kate Emerson novel, The King’s Damsel, and the next entry, Royal Inheritance, which will be out this summer. Here follows a brief account of my experience in front of the camera.

Sometimes this triple identity thing gets a little confusing. And some of you also know that I write non-mystery historical novels under a second pseudonym, Kate Emerson.

Kaitlyn Dunnett, as many of you know, is a pseudonym.

The pleasure palace by kate emerson