by Kasia | Mar 20, 2016 | Interviews, Reading
One Small Victory by Maryann Miller
Life can change in just an instant.
That thought wove its way in and around her mind as Jenny fingered the clothes jammed along the wooden rod in the closet. His funny T-shirts promoting the likes of “Prince” and “Dilbert.” His one good shirt, only worn under duress. His leather jacket that still carried a faint aroma reminiscent of saddles and horses.
Sometime soon she’d have to clean out the closet. Isn’t that what usually happens?
Tears burned her eyes and she turned away. She didn’t know what was supposed to happen. No one had ever told her. And a multitude of questions swam through her mind like restless minnows in a pond.
There were books on choosing a college. Books on how to plan a wedding or how to help your child find a job. But no one had ever written one on what to do when your son dies.
Thus begins what is a mother’s worst nightmare, the loss of a child. For most women, that loss would hold them in a grief so pervasive they couldn’t function, but Jenny Jasik doesn’t give in to the paralysis. After discovering how rampant drugs are in her rural Texas town, she bullies her way onto a Drug Task Force and works as a confidential informant to help bring down the main distributor. This isn’t done without considerable risk, not only to her safety but to her sanity and to the sanctity of her family.
EXCERPT
She sank to the edge of her bed, the pain threatening to drag her into the dark abyss. Her blood pounded so loud in her ears it took a minute to realize someone was knocking on the door.
“Mom?” Scott’s voice called from the hallway. “Can I come in?”
Jenny took a deep breath, then rose and opened the door.
“I was wondering . . . uh,” Scott’s eyes had difficulty resting on hers. “Has Dad called back yet?”
She shook her head.
“Well, uh . . . do you want me to call him?”
Again, she shook her head. “It’s something I should do. I’ll try again as soon as I’m finished here.”
Scott hesitated a moment more, then backed out of the doorway. Jenny quickly closed the door. Better that he not see the flush of anger that warmed her cheeks. She’d tried to call Ralph last night, sometime during those hours of agony between leaving the hospital and finally collapsing for a brief period of fitful sleep, but there’d been no answer.
Last night she’d been too numb to care. It was just so typical. He had never been there for her, or the kids. Not while they were married, and not in the years since he’d left. Most of the time she just accepted it and tried to ease the disappointment for the kids as much as possible. But even though little was said, the message was clear. Ralph wasn’t involved with the kids. Not like a father should be.
But the truth was like a kick in the gut this morning.
“You stupid, sorry, son of a bitch,” Jenny said, running a brush through her dark hair with quick, angry strokes. “Why should I care how you find out? I should just clip the obituary and send it to you.”
It gave her a perverse rush of pleasure to consider doing that, but she wouldn’t. She couldn’t. Out of respect for the fact that he was Michael’s father, she would call again.
Jenny crossed the room and picked up the phone on her bedside table. Still no answer after ten rings, and she started to worry. Maybe it wasn’t even his number anymore. He had a penchant for moving and not getting around to giving them the new number for weeks. She could try him at work later, but she wasn’t even sure that number was current.
Longevity, either professional or personal, was never one of his strong suits.
She slammed the phone down. “Couldn’t you be there for me? Just once?”
AUTHOR BIO
Maryann Miller is a best-selling author of books, screenplays and stage plays. One Small Victory was her first hardcover release. Other books include a police-procedural mystery, Open Season, which is the first in a new series that features two women homicide detectives. Think “Lethal Weapon” set in Dallas with female leads. Miller has won numerous awards for her screenplays and short fiction, including the Page Edwards Short Fiction Award, the New York Library Best Books for Teens Award, and first place in the screenwriting competition at the Houston Writer’s Conference.
Where Can I Buy It?
One Small Victory is available in paper, electronic, and audio. Links to all formats are on Maryann’s Book Page on her website:
http://maryannwrites.com/books/one-small-victory/
AUTHOR LINKS – Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/Maryann-Miller/e/B001JP7Y1S/
Facebook Author Page https://www.facebook.com/Maryann-Miller-176896965725974/
Author Website http://maryannwrites.com/
Interview with Jenny Jasik:
What on earth possessed you to join a drug task force?
If I hadn’t been numb with grief, I might have reconsidered. Everybody kept telling me to, even my best friend, Carol. But I just got so mad when I found out that drug dealers were hanging around the school and other places where kids, even very young kids, were put in danger. People keep saying we need to do something about drugs, so I figured, why not? It took some convincing to get the captain to agree, and I know he was shocked when I passed the tests to work undercover with the task force. I think I was shocked, too.
So what now? Will you do it again?
Are you kidding? I was scared to death most of the time, so I don’t think I’ll do it again. Although, I must say that I liked that Jenny who took no crap from the drug dealers and actually made a huge difference.
Did you have any previous law-enforcement experience?
Heck no. I barely graduated from high school. Like so many young teens, I was madly in love, or so I thought, and couldn’t wait for Ralph and I to get married. Getting pregnant sort of helped that along. And like a silly teenager who believes every word a guy says, I thought we really would live happily ever after. That didn’t happen. Ralph didn’t want to be a husband any more than he wanted to be a father. I’m only sorry that it took so many years for us to figure that out. However, had it not, I wouldn’t have had my three wonderful kids.
What was the most difficult part of your life?
That’s pretty obvious, I think. Losing Michael was like losing part of myself. I’d heard people say that a parent should never outlive their children, and I’m here to tell you the truth in that. Even thinking back to that horrible day the pain is as strong as it was then. There were days I didn’t know if I even wanted to go on without Michael, but I had the other kids to think of. And then the opportunity to get some vindication. That helped.
Do you see another man in your life in the future?
Funny you should ask. I worked with a detective, Steve. He was the one I reported to and who held my hand through the whole process of applying and then working on the task force. We both recognized that there was some chemistry between us, but his professionalism held him back. Plus, we were both dealing with a lot of emotional pain. He had lost his wife. So we didn’t want to rush into some kind of relationship that would put his job at risk and maybe we weren’t ready for anyway. Now that some time has passed, we are considering trying to make something work for us. Maybe I can convince Maryann to write that story. I’ve been bugging her about it.
by Kasia | Mar 18, 2016 | Interviews, Reading, Writing
Author Linda K. Sienkiewicz writes women’s fiction/ contemporary romance. Her debut novel In the Context of Love.
What makes us step back to examine the events and people that have shaped our lives? And what happens when what we discover leads to more questions? In the Context of Love revolves around the journey of Angelica Schirrick as she reevaluates her life, and its direction.
Returning with her children from their first visit with her now imprisoned husband, she tries to figure out where it all went so wrong. Can she face the failures and secrets of her past and move forward? Can she find love and purpose again? Her future, which once held so much promise, crumbled like dust after the mysterious disappearance of her first love, and the shattering revelation that derailed her life, and divided her parents. Only when she finally learns to accept the violence of her beginning can she be open to life again, and maybe to a second chance at love.
Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of #1 NYTimes Bestseller, DEEP END OF THE OCEAN, says: “With humor and tenderness, but without blinking, Linda K. Sienkiewicz turns her eye on the predator-prey savannah of the young and still somehow hopeful.”
Bonnie Jo Campbell, author of Michigan Notable Book MOTHERS TELL YOUR DAUGHTERS, says “Sienkiewicz’s powerful and richly detailed debut novel is at once a love story, a cautionary tale, and an inspirational journey. It should be required reading for all wayward daughters, and their mothers, too.”
Eggcerpt from In the Context of Love:
“I had everything under control, baby doll. You didn’t need to do that,” he said, opening and closing his fists.
“Oh, yeah, right. I could see that. Who is she?” My knees started to shake as if my body finally realized fear was the appropriate reaction.
“One crazy bitch, that’s who. She could’ve killed you.” He examined the side of my face, touching gently. “This might bruise. I didn’t know you had so much fight in you. What a little ball breaker,” he said, as if proud of me.
I scowled as I jerked my head away. “You told her you’re clean. What does that mean?”
“Just that. She’s looking for what I don’t have. Forget it. She won’t come back.” He led me into the bedroom and sat me on the bed, as if disruptions of this sort were common in his life, then got a wet washrag from the bathroom and held it to my face. The concern in his eyes was genuine. The stinging pain slid from my cheek down into the sorely beating muscle in my chest when I realized I cared about this man more than I should. I wanted to kiss him as badly as I wanted to clobber him.
I asked him how tight he and this Blossom person had been, and he said, “Like scotch tape on cement.” The cool rag was soothing. I liked the way he held it to my face. Weighted by vague allegations and indecisiveness, I felt like the wrong answer in an essay test.
“Don’t be mad. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me,” he said as we lay down. His skin felt hot and dry when he rolled on top of me. I took a quick breath, struck by the unexpected burden of his body moving on top of mine, as if he were ironing years of his mistakes onto me. He kissed my face where it hurt, as if to make it all better, like a daddy.
Who was I to question him? A model of truthfulness? So what if he had a few untidy relationships or loose ends? I wasn’t going to have his babies, for crying out loud.
Buy It Here!
In the Context of Love can be purchased in paperback or e-reader on Amazon http://amzn.to/1IiVWEs or Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/1QFs340
Interview with Angelica Schirrick, the narrator of In the Context of Love.
1. Where were you born?
I was brought into this world by midwife Rose Rumble at my great aunt’s farm in Wisconsin, and my mother, young and unmarried, was supposed to give me up for adoption.
2. Do you have a nickname?
People have called me troublemaker, short stuff, hot stuff, cupcake (by my dad) Angel, hure (by my wicked German grandmother — don’t ask why), but most people call me Angie.
3. What’s your most embarrassing moment?
When I was a teen, I was furious with my parents and felt this sudden need to get away from them (who hasn’t?), so I snatched the keys to my dad’s Lincoln and took off. I don’t know what I was thinking. I didn’t have a license or much driving experience. I lost control and drove it into a fir tree in the Brecksville Metropark. I was okay but the car was not.
4. What is your job?
I’m proud to say I’m the marketing and community service director for Safe Harbor, a non-profit women’s domestic violence shelter in Cleveland, Ohio. I love my work.
5. What’s your favorite type of pet?
I grew up with a gorgeous fluffy collie named Cookie, so I’m awfully fond of dogs, but at this point in my life, I’d rather have something low maintenance, like a goldfish, canary, or a rock. Yes, a pet rock would be perfect.
About Linda
Author Linda K. Sienkiewicz attributes her creative drive to her artistic mother, who taught her to sew, and her father, who let her monkey around with the gadgets in his workshop. Her short stories and poetry have been published in more than fifty literary journals in print and online. She has a poetry chapbook award from Bottom Dog Press, a Pushcart Prize nomination and an MFA from The University of Southern Maine.
Website http://lindaksienkiewicz.com
Twitter https://twitter.com/LindaKSienkwicz
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/lindaksienkwicz/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lindaksienkiewicz/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/linda.k.sienkiewicz.author
by Kasia | Mar 14, 2016 | Interviews, Reading, Writing
Sex. Rebellion. Rock and roll.
Living After Midnight, Book 1
Cheyenne is a half-human incubus whose star is on the rise in the Unakite City rock scene. His father, the leader of the supernatural races, would prefer he keep a “low profile”, but screw that. Cheyenne has as much music in his veins as royal incubi blood.
Alexander’s future is all set—finish law school, join the family firm, and marry someone who’d be good for business. Not that he has a say in any of it. He’s barely met the woman his father expects him to marry.
As Cheyenne’s musical career takes off, his carefully constructed life begins to unravel, exacerbated by an ex-lover who can’t let go, a crotchety barkeeper with a dirty mind and a pure heart, a drag queen who moonlights as a nanny, and Alexander—who’s not sure if he’s falling for the incubus or the rocker.
Cheyenne denies who he is, while Alexander hides what he wants. Together, they learn that getting what they truly want means being who they truly are.
Excerpt
~~~~
The blue-gray glow of the synthesizer’s lights increased with the music’s crescendo and tugged him to the edge of his seat. The beginning of a show was one of his favorite parts. He was also partial to the middle and the end.
But Alexander didn’t applaud and stomp and scream in anticipation like the rest of the crowd. He was grateful to be able to keep his composure, but the truth was, it was all he could do to remember to breathe.
With a burst of light and a thunderous chord, Cheyenne appeared at center stage, arms out from his sides. An ethereal white light illuminated him. A rock and roll messiah.
Buy It Here!
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
https://www.samhainpublishing.com/book/5575/house-of-the-rising-son
Author Bio
Trevann Rogers writes urban fantasy and LGBT paranormal romances. Her stories incorporate an unquenchable addition to music and her love for vampires, Weres, incubi and rock stars. Like these elusive creatures, Trevann learned long ago that sometimes being yourself means Living After Midnight.
Author links
www.trevannrogers.com
www.facebook.com/trevannr
www.pinterest.com/trevannr
www.twitter.com/trevannrogers
Character Q&A: Cheyenne Constantine
1. Nickname ~ Chey
2. Job~ Musician
3. Level of schooling, or self-taught: I graduated high school. But I taught myself guitar and piano
4. Birthdate ~June 2
5. Birthplace ~Unakite City
6. Currently residing in ~Unakite City
7. Favorite type of pet ~ Tiger but don’t tell Zander. I’d be in the doghouse for sure.
8. Favorite place to visit~ Las Vegas
9. Significant other ~Zander
10. Most important goal ~I’m going to be a rock star.
11. Worst fear or nightmare ~Failing my kids somehow.
12. Favorite food ~Zander
13. Wealthy, poor, or somewhere in between? ~Poor but not for much longer.
14. Secret desire or fantasy ~I want my father to be proud of me.
15. What would you do if you won the lottery? ~Buy a big house, get my kids every thing they want, and get a custom made guitar.
by Kasia | Mar 12, 2016 | Interviews, Writing
Deputy’s Bride (3rd book in the Naked Bluff, Texas series)
Deputy’s Bride is an erotic, historical western that is a stand-alone story with a satisfying HEA. Texas Deputy Bo Kildare is looking for a special kind of lady, one that is willing to meet his special requirements. No sweet little virgin will do, he wants a woman who knows how to please a man, perhaps two.
Recently widowed, Sarah Elizabeth Foster-LaFever has lived in the public eye for the last few years and wants out. Her reputation as Micah LaFever’s wife has left her penniless and without many viable options until Bo comes calling. Now, she believes she found the perfect man until her past rears its ugly head.
Can murder and corrupt dealings keep these two lovers from making it to the alter?
Excerpt:
The man died a little over a year ago, after he suffered a head injury when thrown by his prize stallion. His wife, Sarah Elizabeth Foster had the status of…
Bo struggled to recall what chatter, he’d heard in relation to the woman. Her name was of course associated with Micah’s, but Bo couldn’t remember reading anything in reference to her. “I’d have thought by now, one of her husband’s friends would have married her.”
“She’s hoping to escape from that group of people and live a quiet life. Sarah never particularly cared for the spotlight.” Madeline paused.
The waitress set a cup and saucer in front of each of them, and poured the steaming hot coffee.
Impatient to learn more, Bo studied Madeline’s weathered face, noted the slight sagging of her cheeks that created jowls, the intense fire of her gaze, and her thin lips. Her thick gray hair lay stacked on her head like a queen wearing a crown.
A contact of his father, he’d considered her a friend for most of his life. She ran the local general store with her husband. She had connections all over the state. They were either customers, friends, or part of her large extended family. That was the reason behind him soliciting her help. She knew people, he didn’t.
After the waitress had served him and walked away, he resumed their conversation. “How do you know her?”
“Friend of a friend. First, she wanted me to tell you that if you’re looking to have children she’s not the girl for you.”
“Can’t have any?”
“Yes. Now would you like to meet her? She’s staying over at the hotel in the…” Again, she peered at the other customers in the diner and lowered her voice. “Private cabin at the back of the property.”
He lifted an eyebrow, recognizing the fact the woman was paying through the nose for the special accommodations.
“She doesn’t want anyone to know she’s in town. She’d rather avoid having to answer any unsolicited questions from the press,” Madeline added.
“And have you told her about me?” Bo debated the likelihood of her passing his requirements for a wife.
“Yes, and she’s eager to visit your spread.”
The mention of his ranch reminded Bo of another problem. What would his brother say at the possibility of Bo bringing a woman home? Chase didn’t care for people. Women, he claimed, were nothing but trouble. Instead, horses were more his specialty, and because of him, their ranch was thriving.
Shoving aside his concerns regarding his sibling, Bo left his coffee untouched and stood. He tossed a few coins on the table. “I guess then I better head that way.”
Buy It Here
http://www.amazon.com/Deputys-Bride-Naked-Bluff-Texas-ebook/dp/B00NUTJ5N6
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-deputy039sbride-1689844-357.html
About Anita Philmar
Anita Philmar likes to create stories that push the limit. A writer by day and a dreamer by night she wants her readers to see the world in a new way.
Influenced by sci-fi programs, she likes to develop places where anything can happen and where erotic moments come to life in a great read.
Naughty or Nice?
Read her books and decide.
Website: http://www.anitaphilmar.com/
Email: anitaphilmar@yahoo.com
Blog: http://www.anitaphilmar.blogspot.com/
FB: www.facebook.com/anita.philmar
GR: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1329767.Anita_Philmar
Twitter: https://twitter.com/anitaphilmar
FB: www.facebook.com/anita.philmar
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/anitaphilmar
Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/Anita-Philmar/e/B002BMBE8C
Character Interview
1. Nickname – Sarah – no real nickname
2. Job – other than take care of my husband? No, I enjoy people but now that my husband is dead…well, things have changed.
3. Level of schooling, or self-taught – No, I learned more of what I know from watching others.
4. Currently residing in… Naked Bluff, Texas
5. Favorite type of pet – My horse is my world. He’s all I have left from my…well prior life
6. Favorite place to visit – At one time, I enjoyed the city. Now, I prefer to live a quiet life away from the gossip and mean comments regarding my past.
7. Significant other – Bo Kildare says he wants to marry me but I’m not so sure. He is handsome and appears almost to good to be true. Still, most men want more than there willing to tell you so I’m reserving judment until I get to know him better.
8. My most important goal is to have a quiet life with a man I can respect.
9. My worst fear or nightmare to have to marry a man who see me more as a servant than a wife.
10. Favorite food – steak.
11. Wealthy, poor, or somewhere in between? I’ve been wealthy and poor, there are advantages and pains at both end of the scales.
12. Secret desire or fantasy – to have a man that loves me for who I am.
13. What would you do if you won the lottery? Don’t know there is such a thing in 1860, but I never cared much for gambling.
by Kasia | Aug 30, 2015 | Interviews
Welcome to the series, Sunday Sessions, where you’ll get to meet authors from around the world, writing in different genres, sharing their writing tips, marketing adventures and much more.
Please welcome Australian author, Nene Davies.
1 – Tell us a bit about yourself?
Hi Kasia! Well – my name is Nene Davies and I’m a Welsh-Australian writer living in beautiful Brisbane. I’m married to Chris and have three grown-up children and two dogs. I started writing full-time back in 2012, when Chris’s job took us down to Melbourne for a year. I found myself in a little apartment in the middle of a new city and realised that this was my opportunity to get that book written!
2 – What inspired you to write ‘‘Distance’ and ‘Further’?
We emigrated from Wales to Queensland in 2002. It had been a dream that became a possibility, and then finally a reality. We couldn’t believe it! Emigrating was fantastically exciting and terrifying at the same time. We had never been to Queensland before, though we’d spent the Christmas and New Year of the Millennium in New South Wales, so the whole adventure was amazing! We were lucky; most people were super-supportive of our dream to emigrate and only wished us well, but I started to wonder ‘what if?’ What if my Mum had been so distraught at our leaving that she’d begged us to stay? What if I’d had cold feet about the move but my husband had not? Would we still have come? Would we be in Wales today instead of Brisbane? This little seed of an idea became the basis for my first novel ‘Distance.’ I took all the ‘what ifs’ and wrote them into my fictional family’s lives. The bones of the story are true, in that we did emigrate, we do have three children, the locations in the story are places where we lived – but I gave the Richardsons a ton of drama and angst that thankfully we didn’t encounter….but we could have! After I had finished writing ‘Distance’ I went on to the sequel, ‘Further,’ which as the name suggests is the next instalment of the story. In ‘Further’ we find the family’s problems are only just beginning and when main character Isobel’s elderly mother becomes ill, twelve thousand miles away on the other side of the world, the wheels really do start to come off!
3 – Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
‘Distance’ is a story about the nuts and bolts of starting a new life, but it’s also a story about relationships. The mother/daughter bond, a marriage, parenting. It’s about making hard decisions that you know will hurt someone you love. It’s about trying to do the right thing for everyone. It’s about strong women who care. It’s about not giving up.
I think the best way I can sum up the message of ‘Further’ would be by way of that old saying ‘Relax. Nothing is under control.’ We try and try, but oftentimes the universe has other ideas for us!
4 – What sort of research did you do before you started writing?
To be honest, I didn’t really do any. I had the Distance Series books in my head as a result of our own journey of emigrating, so all I had to do was take our story – and then put my fictional family through the wringer!
5 – What do you love/hate most about writing or being a writer?
First and foremost, I love writing! I love the feeling of completing a sentence, or chapter, or novel and knowing that I’ve created something that didn’t exist before. Getting deep into a scene and really living that argument, or feeling the sun on my face, or welling up with tears, or laughing my head off along with my characters – that’s the fun part I think. I’m also a big fan of social media. I love marketing which might sound odd, but it’s something I’ve learned over time, to enjoy. I love meeting readers and writers – whether it’s face to face or online What I dislike would be the nitty gritty bits like editing and formatting. I’m not a graphs and spreadsheets kind of person, I don’t really plan much and so keeping to required guidelines can be a struggle. Bleugh!
6 – What is your typical writing day like?
Mornings are for scooting round and getting stuff done. I’m up early and after sorting out the dogs with their breakfast, I usually grab a cup of tea and hop online. I’ll post things on my social media pages and have a look at what’s going on in the world. It’s lovely to connect with other writers and readers and I’ve made some wonderful online friends that way. After breakfast, I’ll head out to do all the bits and pieces like grocery shopping and dog walking – and there is always a coffee break in there somewhere! I usually meet a friend but if I happen to be by myself, I’ll take the chance to catch up on some reading. I start writing in the afternoons. Typically one o’clock until about five-ish. Hopefully, a lovely family member will appear with a cup of tea and /or wine at some point! Fortunately all the family are good at cooking, so we take turns to make dinner. I like to have dinner early and go to bed early too, as I’m up at the crack of dawn. I enjoy yoga and meditation – when I’ve finished writing for the day is my favourite time for that.
7 – What are you currently reading?
Oh I’m reading a book called In Conversations With Strangers by Queensland author Brenda Cheers. I have just started – and loving it so far!
8 – If you were having a dinner party and could invite five people, living or dead, who would you invite and why?
Well first and foremost – my family! It’s always a special time when we get together, which isn’t all that often as we are scattered around the country. There are usually one or two of our children around, but often not at the same time so to have us all round the table at the same time would be fab. I’d love to have met Maeve Binchy. Her books just shine with warmth and friendship and I feel that she would have been a lovely person. I’d love to meet Billy Connolly and I reckon he’d make a fantastic dinner guest! He just comes over as a genuinely nice guy, plus funny as all get-out, interesting and a brilliant storyteller. Eddie Izzard is another person I’d love to meet as again he seems like such a wonderful teller of tales and has a warmth and friendliness about him. Oh gosh, there are so many others….but I think that maybe I’ll stop there!
9 – What’s your view on social media marketing for authors?
I think that like it or not we need to embrace social media if we want to spread the word about our work. However, it can be tempting to sign up for all the various platforms and in order to post interesting content – or at least a good quote or something! – we need a ton of time. I think it’s probably better to stick to just a few and try to do those well, rather than spreading oneself too thin. I post to Facebook and Twitter every day and to Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn less frequently. Social media is a fabulous tool for writers, but it can also be a time thief. Finding that balance is sometimes not easy.
10 – Do you have any marketing tips for new authors?
If possible, I think it’s great if you can create a brand for yourself. If you can keep your voice consistent and your content in the same tone, I feel that it helps people to remember you. I’ve read blogs where the author suggests using the same profile photograph across all your social media sites and while I think this is a good idea, I do tend to use different photos for different places. I’ve also read somewhere that it’s good to change photos and headers quite often, as it doesn’t take long for a page to look tired. If a reader doesn’t think it’s changed since the last time they checked in, they are perhaps less likely to bother scrolling through.
11 – If your book was turned into a film, who would you like to play your main characters?
Oooh – this is a fun one! Well, I’d like my main character Isobel to be played by someone who I think is charismatic and relatable – and also very beautiful! Rachel Weisz would be perfect. I think that Welsh actor Rhys Ifans would make a wonderful Leo (Isobel’s husband). Helen Mirren, Judy Dench or Maggie Smith would all be fabulous as difficult grandmother, Nana Helen!
12 – Do you ever get writer’s block? How do you overcome it?
Not writing is the surest way for me to get writer’s block. I like to flex that writing muscle every day as I find that the more I write, the easier it is to avoid the dreaded writer’s block.
13 – Where is your favourite place to write? Why?
I love my little office at home. It’s blue and white and very calm. However, since my husband travels with work and I sometimes go with him, I have learned to carve out a space to write, wherever I am. Even a busy cafe can be a fab spot for writing sometimes.
14 – What do you love most about living in Queensland, Australia?
Oh goodness, there are too many things to name, but what springs to mind first, is the sea. I adore the beach and would love to live as close as possible. Brisbane is home, but I like to daydream about having a little writing shack on a pristine Queensland beach and writing bestselling novels underneath a palm tree…sigh….!
15 – How did you go about getting your books in physical bookstores?
I have found that turning up in person is the scariest way to approach this, but also the most effective. I’ve tried e-mailing (hard) and phoning (harder) but meeting a store owner or manager face to face (hardest!) is the way to go. At least – that’s what’s worked best for me so far.
16 – Can you tell us a little bit about your current project?
I have just finished writing the third and final book in the Distance Series. This one is called Surfacing and I hope to have it published over the next few months. I’m editing like mad at the moment!
Please share your social media links:
Website – http://www.nenedavies.com
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/nenedavieswrites
Twitter: – @Nene_Davies
Amazon: – Nene Davies
THE DISTANCE SERIES
in a nutshell…
Distance
Take a passionate couple, a rock-solid family and an idyllic life on the West Wales coast. Throw in an outrageous dream, a life-changing situation and a difficult grandmother. Add a teaspoon of luck and a bucketload of love, mix in a dollop of emotion, a river of conflict – and stir!
Further
Isobel Richardson is torn. With an elderly dependent mother on one side of the world and her husband and children in Australia, her priorities are drifting further and further away from one another. She tries to stretch around the globe with a hand on each household, but guess what? She can’t. If only she could be in two places at once; be everything to everyone. Perhaps then her family wouldn’t be falling apart.
Surfacing
(coming soon)
Isobel’s life has changed. All but destroyed one sunshiny day; just like that, when she wasn’t looking. She needs to wake up and realise that unless she starts swimming, the waters might close completely over her head.
by Kasia | Aug 23, 2015 | Interviews
Welcome to the series, Sunday Sessions, where you’ll get to meet authors from around the world, writing in different genres, sharing their writing tips, marketing adventures and much more.
Please welcome, Heidi Rice.
1 – Tell us a bit about yourself?
I’ve always been a romance junkie and a film buff. I’d worked for 20 years as a film journalist in London (my home town) when I decided to try and write a novel. That was about ten years ago. Two years, lots of discarded manuscripts and a rejection letter later, I finally got published by Harlequin Mills and Boon in 2007! Since then I’ve written 18 novels, novellas and short stories for Harlequin, Entangled and recently Tule Publishing, sold over a million copies of my books worldwide, become a USA Today bestseller and picked up two RITA nominations. And I love it! It’s hard work – much harder than film reviewing btw – but it’s also super rewarding… Plus I get to search through pictures of Jamie Dornan on Pinterest and call it research!
2 – What inspired you to write Tempting the Knight?
My good friend and former fellow Harlequin KISS author Amy Andrews, who I had worked with before on a continuity for KISS, got in touch and said would I be interested in doing a series of linked books that would be modern takes on classic fairy tales… Then we thought of setting the series in New York (a city where my husband was born and where we got married and which I absolutely adore)… Then I began to think of Rapunzel and the whole ‘rescue from the Ivory Tower’ theme and I had the idea to do her as a runaway supermodel (with famously long blonde hair) who gets reluctantly ‘rescued’ from her metaphorical ivory tower by a hard-working legal aid attorney after getting caught midnight swimming on Manhattan Beach… I stayed on a Brooklyn house barge that summer, which also inspired the setting when my attorney takes my runaway supermodel back to stay at his place for the Labor Day Weekend to avoid the press…
3 – How did you start writing for Harlequin/Mills & Boon?
I was originally pitching to Silhouette Special Edition, but when my second completed manuscript went through the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers Scheme in the UK, the reader loved it and suggested sending it to an editor at M&B in the UK who were starting a new line linked to Modern/Presents. She loved it too, but wanted me to cut it by 30k words! I did and then she offered me a two-book contract. Bingo!
4 – What sort of research did you do before you started writing?
Not a lot, I tend to do research as and when I need to and I generally prefer to contact experts rather than just research stuff on the internet if I can. For example I had an idea for a story once – which became Surf Sea and a Sexy Stranger – where the opening scene has a female lifeguard saving a guy from drowning on a windswept beach in Cornwall. I had been to Cornwall that summer and seen some lifeguards in action so wrote the scene originally from what I had observed. But when I finished the story, I contacted a female lifeguard thru the RNLA’s website and she very kindly offered to read the scene and check it for authenticity… I find that’s the most efficient way to do things if I can, because otherwise I get totally bogged down in research and don’t write!
5 – What do you love/hate most about writing or being a writer?
I love it when the words are flowing and my characters are talking to me and letting me inside their heads… I hate it when the words are not flowing and my characters are being uncommunicative! Which is quite often, unfortunately.
6 – What is your typical writing day like?
I tend to prat about on the internet for about an hour after breakfast, checking emails, doing Twitter or FB or Instagram posts and any promo (like this questionnaire!)… Then I try to sit down and write til lunch. After lunch I’ll write some more and if I’m not on a screaming deadline or completely in the zone I do try and go to the gym around 4 for a dose on the cross trainer (but that’s not every day!). But TBH I don’t often have typical days, sometimes I’ll get sidetracked, some days I might be working in my other job at a UK magazine where I freelance occasionally, others I’ll still be plugging away at 8pm, which is probably why I can write anything from 10-4000 words a day..
7 – What are you currently reading?
I’ve just finished the second book in Sarah Morgan’s new Puffin Island trilogy which I enjoyed immensely, I love bad boy heroes and she does them really well, plus the Maine island setting is to die for. I’m about to start Festive in Death, one of JD Robb’s Roarke and Eve Dallas books that I recently discovered I somehow managed to miss…
8 – If you were having a dinner party and could invite five people, living or dead, who would you invite and why?
My Dad, because I miss him and I have so much to tell him about the two grandsons he never got to meet.
Jamie Dornan, because he could just smolder decoratively in the corner and inspire me!
Pierce Brosnan, because I used to have a massive crush on him, but now think he is just a really good bloke (and him and my Dad would probably get on like a house of fire because they’re both liberal-minded Irish lads who made good)
Susan Elizabeth Phillips, because I adore her books and she’s sharp and funny and always been full of fabulous advice the two times I’ve seen her lecture at the RWA conference.
Diana Gabaldon, because I am an Outlander-aholic and I would just like to worship her for creating Jamie Fraser.
9 – What’s your view on social media marketing for authors?
Hmm, well I love chatting on Facebook, posting pics of my holiday travels on Instagram, Tweeting indiscriminately about my likes and dislikes, etc, and I do get involved with doing some social media marketing on Facebook pages set up specifically for the purpose, but ultimately I don’t like using my social media presence to directly sell books. Social media is essentially supposed to be a sociable experience, so if me being sociable and being part of the conversation makes people interested in me enough to go check out what I write great. And if I’ve got a new release out, or am doing something people might be interested in I flag it up, but I think any direct marketing on social media doesn’t sell books, it just annoys people, especially if you do too much of it… Better to spend the time just writing good books really, because let’s face it Social Media can be a total timesuck.
10 – Do you have any marketing tips for new authors?
Write the best book you can and try to write them quickly. I’m thinking of getting a newsletter cos I’ve been told that’s good… But I don’t have one yet!
11 – If your book was turned into a film, who would you like to play your main characters?
I do Pinterest boards for all my books now… So I have spent many hours considering this exact question in considerable depth (ie trawling the internet to cast my books!). Tempting the Knight had Jamie Dornan as my hero, Irish-American legal aid attorney Ty Sullivan, and Kiera Knightley as my British-educated supermodel heroine Zelda Madison… The fact that they were once a couple in real life didn’t hurt at all… For more visual stimulation on that, check out the board here… https://www.pinterest.com/hlric/fairy-tales-of-new-york-tempting-the-knight/
12 – Do you ever get writer’s block? How do you overcome it?
I get writer’s bleurgh… as in I have times when I know what I’m writing is complete garbage and it can make me very dispirited and not want to go on… But the solution is always to just keep on writing, or if it’s really bad, I’ll take a short break and then try and figure out where I went wrong… Then keep writing. But sometimes I have to keep on writing, even when I know what I’m writing is crap.
13 – Where is your favourite place to write? Why?
In my study, in silence, where I have a minimal number of distractions… I am very easily distracted!
14 – How did you go about getting your books in physical bookstores?
I sold to Harlequin and they printed them for me and distributed them…
15 – Can you tell us a little bit about your current project?
I’m currently writing my second longer book – the first is due out in February next year, and is about a British celebrity chef, her sexy ex and their trip to an extreme couples retreat in Tennessee. This book is set in Wiltshire in the South West of England, about a woman grew up on an alternative-lifestyle commune in the 1990s with her Mum and is being forced to return there with her 10-year-old son in tow after her marriage to a US senator’s son fails miserably! The place has changed dramatically but unfortunately for her, the guy she had a teenage fling with is still there, and is now running the place, and he’s no more pleased to see her than she is to see him!
Please share your social media links:
Website: www.heidi-rice.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/4FairyTalesofNewYork/
Twitter: @HeidiRomRice
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Heidi-Rice/e/B002AU1JIK
Instagram: https://instagram.com/heidiromrice/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/hlric/
Tempting the Knight by Heidi Rice
Book 2 of The Fairy Tales of New York series
Once upon a time, poor little rich girl Zelda Madison wanted someone to love her, until she discovered being a badass was much more fun.
Ten years after getting kicked out of convent school and torn away from her three best friends, Zelda has worked hard to clean up her act, but her wild streak has never been completely tamed and — one midnight swim on Manhattan Beach later — she’s suddenly in urgent need of a knight in shining armor…
Hard-working legal aid attorney Tyrone Sullivan is the last guy she should call. Not only does he hold a grudge when it comes to Zelda leading his little sister astray all those years ago, he’s also supremely pissed about having to rescue a runaway supermodel from a Brooklyn police station at two am. But when Ty reluctantly agrees to bust Zel out of her ivory tower and let her hide out on his house barge for a few days, she shows him the wild side he didn’t know he had.
Zel discovers there’s nothing hotter than tarnishing a good guy’s armor… Until he starts to steal her bad girl’s battered heart…
The Fairy Tales of New York series
Book 1: Pursued by the Rogue by Kelly Hunter
Book 2: Tempting the Knight by Heidi Rice
Book 3: Taming the Beast by Lucy King
Book 4: Seduced by the Baron by Amy Andrews
