However, Mills and Boon this is not. Winters roams the worlds of ‘‘dark’’ or ‘‘grey’’ romance, aka the themes of submission/dominance and entrapment/escape found in British author E.
Q Why do you do what you do?
A I was born to be a storyteller. I'm very lucky that I found my joy of imagination and the written word from a young age and was able to work on my craft until it became a career. I couldn't do anything else now I know the freedom of doing something I love.
Q What is your earliest memory?
A Oh, I'm not sure. I have lots of early memories of living in Hong Kong and exploring new places. I suppose getting bitten by a monkey on an elephant ride when I was 2 in Thailand is quite strong. It hurt and I had to have a rabies injection, which hurt even more.
Q What did you want to be when you were growing up?
A A writer. I was home-schooled in Hong Kong and loved creative writing in the afternoon. I could make up stories, create new worlds, and generally became addicted to the characters I could create.
It's funny that I was so drawn to that vocation when I flunked English at school. I never enjoyed school but knew what I was meant to become.
Q What is your most embarrassing moment?
A I can honestly say I've never really done anything super embarrassing - luckily ... and touch wood. The closest would probably be being late for a flight and dashing on board to claps and cheers of the cabin (I was a flight attendant at the time so it was doubly worse).
Q Property aside, what's the most extravagant thing you've bought?
A This relates to a very recent purchase, as I've just got back into horse riding. I used to ride a lot when I was younger but then life got busy and I put those dreams on the back burner.
I just recently forked out for a lovely black gelding and brand new float to transport him around town for rides. It was a splurge but 100% worth it as I'm a workaholic and having an animal to take care of and ride makes me find time for myself again.
Q Who would play you in the film of your life?
A No idea. Someone who has a sense of humour, a little clumsy, a lot focused, and not afraid of hard work or making fun of themselves.
Q What is your guiltiest pleasure?
A Dessert. I can't say no to a creme brulee. I'm also not a drinker but put a lychee martini in front of me and it's empty in seconds.
Q What would be your dream job?
A Writing novels. And I'm lucky enough to do that for my career. I couldn't ask for more.
Q Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
A All my friends and family. People I know and trust. I'm rather reclusive and don't like to be the centre of attention so a low-key affair that is stress-free and fun is my perfect event.
Q What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
A Finding more time to de-stress and focus on the 'real world' rather than being stuck in a time vortex of writing upward of 16 hours a day. Buying my horse is a way to ensure I live in the now. It's working so far.
Q What keeps you awake at night?
A Everything. I'm an insomniac so every little thing keeps me up. Plot holes, editing mishaps, marketing concepts, horse care, house maintenance, if I left the oven on ... my brain never shuts up and I've had to learn to live with that, as I've never had more than a few hours of sleep a night for as long as I can remember.
Q What song would you like played at your funeral?
A No idea ... who thinks of that? I want to be cremated and remembered for having fun and donating everything I have to animal charities around the world. Music doesn't matter ... as long as there are lychee martinis.
For more information about Pepper Winters and her many books, visit: https://pepperwinters.com
