Let’s Talk Bad Reviews by Mae Clair

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Mae Clair

Psst! I’ll tell you a secret. The first review I ever got was three-stars. Now, I don’t necessarily consider three stars a bad review, but I don’t count it as great either. I’ve given a number of three-star reviews and imagine them somewhere middle of the road.

Naturally, as a newly published author, launching my first book, I had dreamed of five stars. There were plenty that followed, but that first one came as an eye-opener. I even had one of my friends give a four-star review and then send an email explaining what I could have done better. I learned from that gentle criticism, as I have done from many others in the past.

I didn’t agree with the reviewer who said I had too many characters or that my plot was too complex, but I do understand that romance readers don’t always like their stories ladled with mystery and multi-tiered plots. Lesson learned. Which is why I’ve made an adjustment to my genre, story-telling, and branding.

It wasn’t until I wrote my fifth book that I received my first two-star review. By then I realized every reader has an opinion and I’m not going to appeal to all of them. I have no problem with someone giving me a negative review, but I had a BIG problem with what the person insinuated. I won’t go into the details, but for the purpose of this post, let’s just say I was upset.

I remember sitting on my back porch, talking to my husband about it. Venting verbally. As an author, I don’t respond to reviews, positive or negative, even though I read every one. An unwritten rule that I learned early in the game. That made accepting that review even harder. I couldn’t defend myself.

During my spat of whining, my husband said something that resonates to this day—basically when you put yourself “out there” you open yourself to criticism, just like any artist. He asked me how many times I had dissed a movie or song, or even a book. Maybe I didn’t post those reviews online but I had an opinion, and everyone was entitled to theirs. If I was going to be a writer, I couldn’t stop people from saying what they wanted to say about my work. It goes with the territory.

Another lesson learned.

By the time I got my first one-star review (and I can’t even tell you what book it was for), I’d adapted a new attitude. I had read a blog post not long before that said something along the lines of “if Stephen King and J.K. Rowling get one-star reviews, why shouldn’t I?” And then it hit me—I’d arrived. I was no longer just getting reviews from friends and other writers I knew online, but readers who had no connection to me. Readers who were rating my work on the same scale they would rate the work of best-selling authors like Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (my favorite writing team). I was in a whole new realm, and although the three, two, and one-stars still crept up occasionally, there were far more four and five-star reviews. Instead of being discouraged by a mediocre review, I now take them in stride as part of my chosen profession.

Reviews are important to an author. Good or bad, we learn from them and they contribute to our growth. If you’ve gotten a bad review you’ve probably felt some of the uncertainty I have. If you haven’t—trust me—it’s just a matter of time. The larger your audience, the more opportunity you have to snag a reader who doesn’t quite get what you’re trying to say. Take it in stride. As my husband told me, when you’re “out there” you expose yourself to the opinions of others.

If you’ve read any of my books, I ask you to leave an honest review. Reviews are the equivalent of gold to an author, and all are greatly appreciated.

If you’re a writer, have you ever felt yourself the target of an unfair review? Has it impacted your love for writing? How do you deal with negative reviews?

Mae Clair Welcomes Author Julie Kavanagh

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Mae Clair

It’s been a while since I’ve had a guest author on my blog. Today, I’d like to welcome Julie Kavanagh, who’s dropped by with her latest release, DEMON BLOOD.

Julie, please tell us a bit about yourself and how long you’ve been writing.
I think I’ve always written or, at least, I’ve always wanted to be a writer. As a child, I penned silly stories for my dolls to listen to (they couldn’t move, and therefore, couldn’t escape). As a teenager, I wrote a dreadful novel about a pop star and his world of drugs – something I knew nothing about then or now. I had moderate success writing sweet romance for women’s magazines and even entered a competition run by the wonderful, late Marian Zimmer Bradley who advised me not to give up writing although I didn’t win that competition.

You’ve been at it a long time and sound like you’ve made some great transitions along the way. And how lovely to have received such encouraging personal feedback from Ms. Bradley!

When it comes to starting a new novel, I always look forward to choosing the names for my characters. How do you choose yours?
I find my characters name themselves. I rarely have trouble coming with their names. With Luca, the principal character in the Demon witch series, I knew who she was before I knew I would be writing her story and although, Luca is a boy’s name, I knew she would explain why she’d been given it.

I love when characters get assertive, LOL. Please tell us more about your newest release.
My latest release is ‘Demon Blood’, which the eighth book in the Demon Witch series. In this novel, Luca’s life has been turned inside out by her grandsire, Lucifer. Her family doesn’t know her and she has had to painstakingly gather her loved ones to her side, and although drawn to the power she exudes, they are wary of who she is. A tragedy leaves Luca bereft and alone once more.

Which character did you enjoy writing the most and why?
I love writing about Luca and the many difficult situations she gets herself into. I don’t want to write about a perfect character and the many wonderfully kind things they do and Luca has none of those qualities. She is half witch and half demon, and struggles to stay on the right path. She is unpredictable, sometimes mean and cruel, but great fun to watch as she battles through the many misfortunes I set her. Her relationship with Eliot, her Pack leader, is enormous fun to create.

It’s wonderful when you enjoy a character so much. How about sharing the first three sentences of your book?
I watched four of them from high up on the hill. I had a secret place I’d built, just in case, and this would seem to be the perfect ‘just in case’ occasion. I stared at them in my garden… my garden!

Hmm…I have a feeling she’s not happy about them being there! And now, switching things up a bit, when you’re not writing (or reading) what do you do to unwind?
I like to listen to music, I knit, sew and crochet. I’d love to paint and play the piano but never had the knack. Spending time with my family is very important to me. We love to watch movies and do the whole thing with popcorn and ice cream … great fun.

It sounds like a great time, especially with the ice cream and popcorn J Moving away from writing, what is your:

Favorite season: My fave season with always be spring. I love watching the blue bells and daffodils appear from the dark soil. Winter can be such a claustrophobic time with its dark grey skies that the brighter days of Spring lift my spirits and promise warm summer days to come.

Favorite time of day: I’m a night owl, always have been. Even as a child, I found it difficult to sleep when I was supposed to, and would read books by the light of the street lamp outside my bedroom window. As a result of my nocturnal awakenings, I find it very hard to get up in the morning for work.

Favorite TV show: I don’t have one fave TV show but a host of several. I love anything paranormal such as Supernatural, True Blood but I am obsessed with A Game of Thrones. I’ve read the books but the show is so much better, I love it.

Favorite animal: My favorite animal is a cat. I have seven cats at home. Most of them are rescue animals or unwanted pets. Two were feral when we got them but they are the most affectionate of all our cats.

Favorite author: My fave author growing was Stephen King, I loved his books and would be found queueing outside our local bookshop for his latest release. My fave author now Is JR Ward, her Black Dagger Brotherhood Novels are fantastic reading. I highly recommend them to anyone who enjoys a dark paranormal romance.

Seven cats? Wow. It’s wonderful that you’ve taken in so many rescue animals, Julie. I love the rebirth of spring too, and have been known to devour more than a few Stephen King books in my time. I’m not familiar with JR Ward but will have to look her up.

Thanks so much for being my guest today. You’re obviously a prolific writer with the number of books you’ve written.

Readers, check out this list:
Jessica’s Diary
Night
Sun Side
Christmas with Mr. Jeffers
Dark of Demon
Coffee Time Collection
Blue Fire
Demon Blood
Loving Lies
The Seventh Son
Christmas Kisses
Frozen Heart of Fire
Coven War
Lucifer
Shadow Sister
Demon Queen
The Bodyguard

If you would like to know more about Julie Kavanagh, you can connect with her at the following haunts:

Website
Facebook
Pinterest

Look for Julie’s books on her AMAZON page here

Welcome Christy Olesen, Author of A Daddy for Luke #tenderromance #contemporary

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Mae Clair

I’m delighted to extend a Pen Pal welcome to Christy Olesen who is celebrating her latest release, A DADDY FOR LUKE. Christy and I originally connected through Savvy Authors when we took a course together, and have remained in contact ever since. Christy is also the author of HER SCOTTISH CEO, a charming contemporary romance set in Scotland. I hope you’ll help me welcome Christy back to my blog!

~ooOOoo~

Hi Mae, thanks for inviting me to your blog today. I’m looking forward to answering your questions and talking a little about my new release A DADDY FOR LUKE.

Fantastic! Let’s start with a bit about you. How long have you been writing?
If you discount my feeble attempts at writing when I was younger — especially after one teacher wrote in the margin of my paper “Learn to use commas!” — I’d say I’ve been writing for nearly thirty years with the first twenty years hit and miss. I’ve been writing, and studying the craft of writing, seriously for ten years.

The dreaded comma. I’ve been tripping over those for almost the same amount of time, LOL. Plotting is also one of my downfalls, but I think even plotters veer from their outline to a degree during the writing process. When you finish a novel, how closely would you say the end product resembles your original concept — 100%? 50%? Something else entirely?
I’m a pantster (working more toward plotting). Since I usually don’t know the ending when I start I’d have to say 50%, because I have only a vague idea where it is going in the first place. With A DADDY FOR LUKE I knew David couldn’t stay in Center City for long or he’d run into his past, but I didn’t know until the third rewrite of the ending just what his “past” was.

Very interesting. I love characters with a past! I’m working toward learning to plot better too (I’m with you on the 50%. NaNo made me realize there are benefits to plotting). My favorite part of starting a novel will, however, always remain choosing character names. What’s your favorite part and how do you go about it?
My favorite part of starting a new novel is coming up with an unusual way to start. I like to find that moment when the characters life takes a turn. They may not know it at the time, but the reader can see it. In A DADDY FOR LUKE I could have started where Sandy met David at his book signing, but I decided to make it a bit more dramatic by placing them both at a crosswalk before they’ve met. As they start to cross David notices a sports car not slowing down. He pulls Sandy from the car’s path just in time. After that they go on their separate ways until they meet again a short time later at David’s book signing event.

A heart-pounding moment. Please tell us more about your new release.
A DADDY FOR LUKE is my second novel. It is the first in my loosely connected Cottonwood County Chronicles series, which takes place in an area much like where I live in northwest Nevada.

I’ve had the pleasure of visiting Lake Tahoe in Nevada. Beautiful area. Which character did you enjoy writing the most and why?
David, because, as a tortured hero who had buried his past, he was challenging to write. I needed to bring his emotions to the surface and he fought it.

Without giving too much away, please share a bit about your favorite scene.
My favorite scene is in the Cottonwood County Cemetery. My beta reader said, “You made me cry again, you RAT FINK!”

LOL! Share the first three sentences of your book.
David Winston stood on the corner of Main Street waiting for the signal to cross. He shrugged the tension from his shoulders and glanced furtively at the others also waiting. He hoped no one in Center City would recognize him, particularly those residents who had been responsible for his abrupt exile eight years ago.

Oooh, love that opening. Now share one sentence – – yes, only one! – – of dialogue or description you love.
A pang of tenderness swept over him when he realized the little angel marker was made of cement, not the marble he’d first thought.

I’m guessing that’s from the cemetery scene. NaNo backed up my reading list, but I can’t want to learn what that’s all about and about David’s past. I love tortured heroes. Now back to you — if you couldn’t be a writer, what else would you choose to do?
I always wanted to be a licensed illustrator, like Mary Engelbreit, Susan Branch and so many others.

Your illustrations in HER SCOTTISH CEO were beautiful. A lovely touch to the novel settings. I’m going to switch gears now and ask about pets, because pets and writers naturally go together like peas in a pod. If you have pets, tell us about them and whether or not they shadow your writing time and space.

This is Cheetah. Need I say more?

So adorable! I’m such a cat person. And yes, they’re notorious for wanting attention when we’re working, LOL. Cheetah looks so comfortable, snuggled up with you.

And now for a few quick questions:

Dream vacation gifted to you by a fairy godmother: A croft cottage on the Isle of Skye
Favorite season: Autumn
Favorite animal: Cats
Favorite ice cream flavor: Chunky Monkey
Sunset picnic or night on the town: Sunset Picnic

Thanks for a fun interview, Christy! Please share where readers can find you:

Website
Blog
Twitter: @christyolesen2
Facebook: ChristyOlesenWriter
Goodreads

Author Bio
Born and raised in L.A., romance writer Christy Olesen found a home in Northwest Nevada just over the hill from Lake Tahoe. Her travels to Scotland, England, Europe, and Canada, as well as living in the high desert of Nevada have inspired her contemporary tender romances. When not writing Christy enjoys traveling in her 1955 self-restored travel trailer. She enjoys gardening, reading and painting. She has worked for over 20 years as a graphic artist for a local community newspaper, an experience which has sparked her series of Nevada tender romances: Cottonwood County Chronicles, and Cottonwood County Sheriff’s Office.

A DADDY FOR LUKE
Blurb
David Winston’s reputation and fame come from his popular novels. Born to parents who hadn’t planned a family, David was taught to think he wouldn’t amount to anything, so becoming a popular author is a surprise to him. He wants to hang on to his success. Born in Center City, then forced to leave eight years ago, he’s back, but not for long. It’s a gamble just being in town: he risks colliding with his past, which could ruin his future. Then he meets Sandy Archer and tempts fate by staying in town a little longer.

Sandy Archer is content to care for her son Luke, work her way up in her job at the Cottonwood County Chronicle, and stay away from any more disastrous relationships. She has lived in Center City all her life and has adapted well to being legally blind. She’s touched when visiting author, David Winston offers to read his book to her. She discovers a kindred spirit. But her budding relationship is threatened when a relative cautions Sandy that David is not who he seems to be.

Purchase A DADDY FOR LUKE from Amazon
Kindle

Or from Create Space
Print on Demand

A Pen Pal Welcome to Christina Cole and Summertime!

Posted on August 22, 2013 by Mae Clair

I’m thrilled to turn my blogging pen over to Christina Cole today as she shares her new release SUMMERTIME, along with some amazing memories of summers past. Oh, how I wish I had my very own catalpa tree and could “go down to Frank’s” in Indian Grove!

Please welcome Christina and enjoy these wonderful memories!

~ooOOoo~

Memories of Summertime
by Christina Cole

With the recent release of Summertime, my latest historical romance from Sweet Cravings Publishing, I’ve been talking to readers a lot about their favorite summer memories from childhood. Today, I thought it would be fun to share a few of my own.

First, I have to point out one fact. I’m old. Ancient, is the way my kids put it. I’m old enough to remember when houses were cooled with window fans, and the few stores with air conditioning bragged about it in their advertisements. Oh, how refreshing it was to walk into a “dimestore” that featured that latest, and greatest technology. The unfortunate thing was that you couldn’t stay there forever. Once you’d finished your shopping, you had to step back out into the sweltering heat. Needless to say, shoppers dawdled as long as they could.

Another sweet summer memory was going to the Dari-B. It wasn’t a big, fancy place like today’s Dairy Queens or Baskin-Robbins, just a little wooden building with a sliding window at the front. You stood outside, placed your order, and when the window opened you could feel a rush of cold air from inside. Your only choice was vanilla or chocolate, but those cones sure tasted good on a hot summer’s evening. You had to lick fast though, because a single scoop could melt away in minutes. Going to the Dari-B became even more of a thrill when I was about thirteen and had a gigantic crush on one of the boys who worked there. Nothing came of it, but I sure ate a lot of ice cream cones that summer.

One of my favorite summer places was the old catalpa tree. It was in Dick Moore’s yard, several houses down the street from where I lived. Dick Moore was an oddity in the neighborhood, a single man living among a dozen families with children. He was a lawyer, and I always had the idea that he made a lot of money, but that was all I ever knew about him. I remember how everyone in the neighborhood poked their heads out of their doors to gawk the one time Dick Moore brought a lady home to his house. We probably scared her away!

All the kids loved the old catalpa tree. We climbed it, held club meetings beneath its branches, and we girls used its huge, heart-shaped leaves and fragrant flowers to design fanciful hats and bracelets. Mr. Moore would sometimes come home to find a dozen of us either in the branches, underneath, or scattered about his catalpa tree. He’d wave or nod and go inside. Never once did he ask us to leave.

On really hot days, we’d beg and plead for someone to drive us to Lake Maurer, a public swimming pool and recreational area on the outskirts of town. If all else failed, we’d gather our swimsuits, towels, and suntan lotions, and set off on foot. Usually some kind soul would take pity on us and give us a lift. Back then, there were no strangers, and nobody had ever heard the term “stranger danger”.

We’d swim in the pool all day, splashing and kicking, shrieking and laughing, and when evening came, we’d finally crawl out of the water, exhausted and waterlogged. Next we’d play a round of miniature golf, or ride the Lake Maurer Special, a wooden train that took us around the bend and back.

The best memory of all was “going down to Frank’s.” Frank Zungs was my great-uncle, although I hardly knew him. He passed away when I was very young. He’d bought a huge old farmhouse in a little place called Indian Grove. The population of the Grove was about 12, which included Frank, his widowed sister, Nina, and his brother, Mike. My grandfather would take my sister and me “down to Frank’s” every summer. Even after Frank was gone, we still called it “going down to Frank’s.” It was always fun to read the “society pages” of the newspaper from the nearest town, because we were society! Yes, in a little place like Indian Grove, it’s news when somebody sneezes, and having relatives come to visit was worthy of several paragraphs. We really thought we were important!

I have a lifetime of beautiful memories from the summers I spent in Indian Grove, and many of my thoughts and feelings found their way into Summertime. As I wrote the story, I thought about that old farmhouse, about sitting on the porch in the evenings, about listening to the sounds of the bullfrogs as I fell asleep.

Summer is always a special time. Thanks for letting me share a few of my memories with you.

~ Christina

Beautiful sunset over a field with podsolnuzami

Don’t you just love this gorgeous cover?

About Summertime:
Linn Sparks wanted all life had to offer. Fame, fortune, glamour and excitement. She found it as a star of the stage at the Crown Theater in San Francisco.

For Ed Ferguson, life was far less complicated. All he wanted was Linnie Mae, but she’d left him standing alone at the altar seven years before when she’d run off to pursue her dreams.

Now, Linn has come home to Brookfield, Kansas.

You can find Summertime at the following online booksellers:
Secret Cravings Publishing
Amazon
Bookstrand
All Romance Ebooks

Wizards with Words: Julia Gabriel and Falling for the Prodigal Son

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Mae Clair

I’m interview happy this week…and happy to interview authors! 😀 Please say hello to today’s Wizard with Words, Julia Gabriel. I initially connected with Julia on Twitter, was drawn in by her book cover for FALLING FOR THE PRODIGAL SON, then fell in love with the breezy romance. Once I’d finished gobbling it up, I asked Julia to be a guest on my blog. Let’s get to know her!

~ooOOoo~

Julia, please share a bit about yourself and how long you’ve been writing.

Well, I’ve been writing stories since I was a kid (back then, I illustrated them too!). My mom was an avid reader, and she passed on her love of books (and romance books) to me. I eventually got a master’s degree in creative writing and now teach business and creative writing at a university in Connecticut. I grew up in south-central Pennsylvania but since then, I’ve lived all over the Washington DC area, in San Francisco and now in New England. I write romance books and literary short stories because I love both.

I’m a Keystoner myself, and I love New England. I can look back and say my passion for reading was a gift from my parents too. You’ve definitely lived in some wonderful places!

Are you a draft writer or someone who invests a lot of time in editing and polishing as you write? Why does your method work best for you?

I’m definitely someone who invests a lot of time in polishing as I go. I’m a slow and careful writer. I love words and sentences so I enjoy the process of just writing sentences. I might be better off if I wrote faster drafts, but that would take away a lot of what I enjoy most about writing.

It sounds like you have a system that works well for you. I’m a polisher too. When it comes to nuts and bolts, which do you develop first, characters or plot?

I usually start with characters in a certain situation. With Falling for the Prodigal Son, my initial idea was “What happens when your new boss was your teenage crush?” Sometimes—like with my current work in progress—the initial situation gets jettisoned because it no longer fits with the way the story is developing. I just had to toss about a hundred pages of that story because the initial situation wasn’t the best way to tell the story.

Wow! That must have been a hard decision to make. I applaud for doing what worked best for the story. Which do you find easier to write and why—description or dialogue?

I find dialogue really easy to write. I think maybe that’s because I am a quiet person by nature—more of a listener than a speaker so I pay close attention to how people talk.

Sounds like me, although sometimes I do get yackity 🙂 Let’s talk about your book, FALLING FOR THE PRODIGAL SON. Which character did you enjoy writing the most and why?

Isn’t this cover GORGEOUS?!?!?

I had the most fun with Sterling Matthew. I always had this image of a little boy hiding behind a tree, watching other kids having fun and not being able to join in. I had to make him confront that little boy at some point. I also had fun writing Lucy’s mom. She was a bit character in the story but she turned out to have quite a personality.

You definitely achieved what you set out to do with Sterling. That image of the little boy hiding behind the tree really hit home for me. What was your favorite scene?

My favorite scene in Falling for the Prodigal Son is definitely the one where Lucy and Sterling are in Muir Woods in northern California (the redwood forest). It’s the scene where they finally confront each other as two people with a history together, and not only as boss and employee. It’s also the first kiss scene! I think the first kiss is my favorite scene in every book (not just mine).

I LOVE first kiss scenes. Great choice! Tell us about the setting for the book (I drooled all over it, LOL).

Falling for the Prodigal Son is set on the eastern shore of Maryland, an area I know well and love. I’ve spent a lot of time kayaking in the area. St. Caroline is loosely based on the real town of St. Michael’s, a sailing mecca and a place where many wealthy people from Washington, DC, own summer homes. I liked the contrast between the wealthy people who vacation there and a summer camp for disadvantaged kids.

Interesting you should say that. The Maryland coast is like a second home to me, and the entire time I was reading FALLING FOR THE PRODIGAL SON, I kept picturing St. Michael’s. It’s a great town!

Share one sentence from the book you love:

“Well, maybe I’m only half sorry. But I’m not going to tell you which half.”

That’s a great line! 🙂 And now, switching gears a bit, when you’re not writing (or reading) what do you do to unwind?

Well, when I’m not writing or reading, I’m usually sitting at my son’s taekwondo practices, grading papers. When I have time, I like to hike and kayak. I also quilt, which I’ve found is a great activity for plotting books. When you hand-quilt, you have to focus on what you’re doing but you don’t really have to think about it. That combination of a focused mind but nothing to think about has given me tons of great plot ideas!

A perfect time to entertain plots and characters! And speaking of plots and characters, share a book that had a profound effect on you and tell us why.

Alice Munro’s “Selected Stories.” She writes literary short stories that have the scope of novels, and her wisdom and insight into the lives of women is breathtaking. Sadly, she recently announced that, at 82, she is done writing.

Oh! It does sound like she’s left a wonderful legacy for readers. And good for her that she kept it up until 82 years of age. What a remarkable author!

Now for some quick personal preference questions:

Dream vacation: A summer to just travel around Europe
Favorite season: Definitely autumn
Food you never grow tired of: Pizza
Owl or lark: Owl
Mountains or beach: Mountains

Autumn in Connecticut must be beautiful!

Julia, thank you so much for being my guest today. It was a pleasure to have you and I’m delighted to share FALLING FOR THE PRODIGAL SON with my readers. I wish you continued success and am so glad we hooked up on Twitter! 🙂

Look for Julia at the following Haunts:

Web
Blog
Twitter: @authorjulia
Facebook
Goodreads

Purchase Falling for the Prodigal Son from Amazon

Blurb:
What could be more embarrassing than having slept with your boss … when you both were teenagers?

All Sterling Matthew wants is to get his family’s inn back on sound financial footing—and then leave sleepy St. Caroline for good. He expected the inn’s staff to resist the business changes he has to make. What he didn’t expect was to find skinny, gawky Lucy Wyndham all grown up.

For years, Lucy wondered whether she’d ever catch another glimpse of the tall, quiet boy she’d crushed on at the Chesapeake Inn’s summer camp. Now he’s her boss—and determined to get rid of the camp to improve the inn’s bottom line. But Lucy is just as determined to save the camp, even if the price is her job … and her heart.

Bio: Julia Gabriel is the author of Cupcakes & Chardonnay, Falling for the Prodigal Son, and Feral. She holds a master’s degree in creative writing and is on the faculty of the Writing Department at a university in New England.

Wizards with Words: D.B. Sieders and Red Shoes for Lab Blues

Posted on July 31, 2013 by Mae Clair

Hey, everyone! It’s Wizards with Words time and I’m delighted to introduce you to another new author. D.B. Sieders has dropped by today to chat about her writing routine and her hot new release, RED SHOES FOR LAB BLUES.

D.B. is a sister author at Lyrical Press and a talented storyteller. I quickly devoured RED SHOES FOR LAB BLUES, her debut release, and am eagerly looking forward to seeing more from her. So get comfy, settle in, and please say hello to D.B.

~ooOOoo~

Let’s start with your writing routine. D.B. Do you have a favorite place and/or time of day to write?

As a working mom, I squeeze in my writing time from 8:00-10:00 P.M. at least three nights a week. Along with weekends and the occasional sprint during my lunch break at work, I manage a decent word count 🙂

Good for you! I often use my lunch break at work for writing too, or catching up with promo. It’s amazing what you can accomplish in a short amount of time when those hours are so precious! Which do you develop first, characters or plot?

For me, the characters come first. I catch a flash of one in action or a snippet of dialogue will run through my mind. That’s how they ‘introduce’ themselves. I’m lucky in that those flashes usually reveal some bit of conflict or character motivation, and then their journey to resolution takes shape as I write the first chapters or scene – so there’s my basic process.

I’m a character-first writer too. I love when they introduce themselves, then hang around demanding attention. A persistent lot, LOL. Which do you find easier to write and why – description or dialogue?

Definitely dialogue! My characters love to talk, whether to each other or to themselves via internal dialogue. I normally crank out all of the conversation for a scene or chapter and then go back to flesh out the setting. I can normally visualize what my characters are doing as they speak, so the action tags work out pretty well.

Sounds like a good process! Please tell us about your new/debut release.

Red Shoes for Lab Blues is a contemporary romance novella featuring two dedicated and somewhat competitive biomedical cancer researchers and set against the backdrop of laboratory and pharmaceutical corporate politics, including an act of sabotage that could turn deadly.

I loved the story and your characters, especially Henry :). And the cover is awesome! For those who haven’t read the book, would you care to share how you chose your title?

Ah, now that would be telling… My heroine, Dr. Stacey Jamison, tends to be pretty focused on her work in the laboratory, to the point of sacrificing a social life. As her roommate points out, Stacey really needs to get out more and ‘recalibrate her normal meter.’ Well, during one such outing, complete with several tequila shots, a bar bet, and a pair of sexy red suede pumps, Stacey stumbles (literally) into her secret crush from work, Dr. Henry Chan. With looks, smarts, and more charm and sex appeal than any geek has a right to flaunt, he might just be the cure for her lab blues – if she can trust him.

Share one sentence – – yes, only one! – – of dialogue or description you love.

Her face split into that winning smile he’d come to adore as she replied, “Hmm, in that case, you should know I am capable of appreciating a man with a really big…vocabulary.”

LOL! Do you have any guilty pleasures (i.e., type of food, music, TV show, shoe obsession, silly distraction) you’d like to share?

We spend a lot of time on Animal Planet in my house (kid friendly), and I absolutely love ‘My Cat From Hell’ and ‘Call of the Wildman.’ The latter definitely counts as a guilty pleasure.

I love My Cat from Hell (feline fanatic here) and I admit to the guilty pleasure of Call of the Wildman. Hubs and I had never watched it before, then met someone who was friends with Ernie, the Turtleman, on a recent trip. After that, we had to give it a try. It’s definitely addictive!

Moving from TV to books, name 3-5 books you’d horde for a deserted island.

Oh, only 5?!?! Well, if I absolutely have to choose, I’d pick Stephen King’s The Stand, at least one or two of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood books (but it would be like choosing between my children), Jeaniene Frost’s Halfway to the Grave (still my favorite out of the series), Thomas Harris’s The Silence of the Lambs, and I’d sneak Jeri Smith-Ready’s Requiem for the Devil in while no one’s looking.

Okay, you can sneak,since I’d have to sneak in more than five too. 🙂 Isn’t it amazing how attached we become to our favorites? Now name a book that had a profound effect on you and explain why.

As per my deserted island reading list, I’d have to go with The Silence of the Lambs. Clarice Starling is one of the toughest heroines I’ve ever encountered in fiction. She has to be – you don’t go toe-to-toe with Hannibal Lecter and Jame Gumb unless you’re a real warrior. She represents the type of heroine I aspire to create in my own work. Harris does such an amazing job showing both her toughness and vulnerability, easy thing for a male writer to do when writing a female character. Hats off to him!

I’ll agree with you there. I’ve read several books by male authors who failed to capture the female mindset. Hmm..I wonder why that is so more glaringly noticeable than a female author who doesn’t capture the male mindset? I’ve seen the movie Silence of the Lambs, but never read the book. It sounds very intense!

Okay, new direction: Pets and writers seem to go together like peas in a pod. If you have pets tell us about them, and whether or not they shadow your writing time and space.

I have two cats, one long-haired Siamese and a short-haired mutt. They’re great mascots, and love to keep me company (and sometimes walk across my keyboard) while I’m typing.

A favorite pastime for cats 🙂

And now, a couple quick questions on your personal preferences:

Favorite season: Autumn
Favorite time of day: Early evening
Favorite color: Burgundy
Food you never grow tired of: Chocolate
Sunset picnic or night on the town: Oh, definitely sunset picnic – I’m a nature girl!

I love early evening and sunset picnics too. Thanks for being my guest today, D.B. I enjoyed having you, and wish you much success with your fab release, RED SHOES FOR LAB BLUES.

Thanks so much for having me, Mae!

~ooOOoo~

You can Find D.B. at the Following Haunts:
Website
Blog
Twitter: @DBSieders
Facebook
Goodreads

Red Shoes for Lab Blues is available from:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
iTunes

Blurb:
Dr. Stacey Jamison thinks she’s close to validating PharmEx’s new anti-cancer drug. Her budding independent career, her boss’s tenure, and a ton of research dollars are at stake. She just has to prove Compound Z kills cancer cells.

So far, it doesn’t.

Then along comes Dr. Henry Chan, the department’s new rising star. Henry is smart, handsome, and confident. He’s also captivated by the enigmatic Dr. Jamison, who seems oblivious to her own charms. But will Henry risk his heart when the research project is at stake?

A rival drug company, an insider with a personal grudge, and militant animal rights protestors force everyone’s plans into disarray. Can their love overcome everything being thrown at them?

Author Bio, D.B. Seiders:
I was born and raised in East Tennessee and spent a great deal of my childhood hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains and wading barefoot in creeks, chasing salamanders, fish, and frogs. We camped a lot, and we loved to tell stories while sitting around our campfire.

Those days of frog chasing sparked my interest in biology, which I pursued in college and later in graduate school. I am a working scientist by day, but I never lost my love of sharing stories. I’ve been an avid reader for as long as I can remember and am thrilled to be working as a writer.

I live in Nashville, Tennessee with my husband, two children, two cats, and my very active imagination.

Cover Reveal: Armed with Steele by Kyra Jacobs

Posted on June 27, 2013 by Mae Clair

It’s time for another cover reveal, which is definitely one of my favorite parts of blogging. I love seeing and sharing the wonderful covers that authors have developed for their books. Today I’m showcasing the cover for my Lyrical Press sister, Kyra Jacobs, and her upcoming romantic suspense release ARMED WITH STEELE. We have the same release day in August. Pretty cool, huh?

And now heat up again as you grab a gander of this HAWT cover, along with the blurb and excerpt below!

Title: Armed With Steele
Author: Kyra Jacobs
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release Date: August 5^th, 2013
Publisher: Lyrical Press

BLURB:
What happens undercover, stays under covers.

Jessica Hartley is looking for answers surrounding the mysterious car accident that nearly claimed the life of her best friend. She’s willing to risk it all, even her fledgling business, to find the person responsible and bring them to justice.

Nate Steele is more than willing to help Jessica, but for reasons all his own. He’s been watching the infamous Maxwell Office Solutions for some time now, convinced there’s more going on than meets the eye. When his chief issues a cease and desist order yet again, Nate has no choice but to accept inexperienced Jessica as an undercover partner outside the letter of the law.

Will Jessica and Nate be able to flush out Maxwell’s elusive villain, or will their growing attraction for each other sabotage their undercover ploy? Motives aren’t always what they seem when Jessica finds herself armed with Steele.

CONTENT WARNING: Beware drool-worthy men in uniform, touchy-feely coworkers, and vindictive ex-girlfriends.

EXCERPT:
The plan seemed simple enough. Apply for Grace’s old job at Maxwell, get hired, and then dig for clues while pretending to be an administrative assistant. Only, I didn’t have the foggiest idea how to be an AA. Didn’t know how to answer multi-lined phones, or schedule appointments, or write short hand. Heck, I didn’t even know if people still used short hand.

Worse yet, I’d actually have to get up at a set time and physically go to work. And socialize with co-workers. Probably even have to pretend I enjoyed it, too.

And if all that wasn’t enough, I’d also be putting myself in the direct line of a coma-inducing psycho. What if I ended up in the same state as Grace? Or worse?

I rolled over onto my other side and tried to silence the out and out war now raging in my head. I didn’t want another job. Didn’t want to deal with cubicles and coworkers, coffee makers and water coolers.

And I especially didn’t want to partner up with an extremely good-looking cop who, if I wasn’t careful, might accidentally pry the scabs off my still-healing heart. I just wanted my Grace back.

AUTHOR BIO:
Kyra Jacobs is a happily married, mother of two, who grew up in Indiana. When she’s not pounding out scenes for her next book, she’s likely goofing around with her husband and kids, or elbow-deep in snapdragons and Lamb’s Ear in one of her many flower gardens. She also loves to golf (though, golf doesn’t really love her) and to jam on the bass in Guitar Hero. Be sure to stop by her blog, http://indianawonderer.wordpress.com for updates on her writing journey and other musings as seen through the eyes of this Midwestern writer.

Look for Kyra at the following haunts:
Blog
Website
Facebook

Add ARMED WITH STEELE to your Goodreads list here

Wizards with Words: Jessi Gage with Road Rage

Posted on June 12, 2013 by Mae Clair

I’m pleased to welcome another Wizard with Words today, my friend Jessi Gage who has just released her contemporary/paranormal romance, ROAD RAGE. This is an awesome story that deserves every one of the five stars I gave it on Amazon. Check out the fantastic blurb, and then dive into our interview to learn more about this wizardy writer and what makes her tick.

BLURB for ROAD RAGE
He has anger issues and she has amnesia, but together they have amazing chemistry.

Lashing out in anger, construction worker Derek causes an accident on the freeway. His truck escapes unscathed, but he can’t say the same for his conscience. Plagued by nightmares of the wreck, his only comfort comes in the form of nightly visits by a mysterious woman who interrupts his dreams with sensual caresses and words of solace.

Cami has no idea who she is, until she wakes in a hospital bed and learns she’s been comatose due to a car wreck. Her visits with Derek must have been a dream, so why can’t she shake the feeling he was a real man who truly needed her help?

When Derek learns his mystery woman is none other than the driver of the car he cut off and she is fighting for her life, he must decide: Is he man enough to face her and ask forgiveness, or will he run away and avoid the consequences of his anger, yet again?

CONTENT WARNING: Sex with a perfect, imaginary dream girl who really isn’t imaginary

A Lyrical Press Paranormal Romance

Jessi, I’m glad to have you here today. To begin, please share a little about yourself and how you developed a passion for writing.

Jessi: Thanks for having me, Mae! Your passion for writing definitely comes through in your blog. I love your Mythical Mondays, especially when they give me goosebumps!

My passion for writing started when I was pregnant with my daughter, who is now almost 4. I was 3 years deep in a PhD program. While conducting research was fun and fulfilling, it was clear to me I wasn’t cut out to be the intellectual engine driving the research, which is what earning a PhD is all about. I found myself struggling to focus on my general exams. My brain kept wanting to go to the story I had been writing for a few months, which was quickly turning into a novel. Looking back, I can see what a train wreck of a novel it was, LOL, but back then, I thought I had the potential to be the next Stephen King. I mean I read his book ON WRITING so I should be able to write as well as him, right? LOL!

After a mental and emotional battle with myself over quitting the PhD program, I finally gave myself permission to step back from a career that wasn’t a good choice for me. Once I did that, I was able to focus without guilt on improving my writing skills. Six books and 4 years later, I landed my first publishing contract with Lyrical Press, and I’m so thrilled I get to stay home with my kids now and write during those precious few downtimes I get throughout the day.

That is certainly an interesting path to writing! It sounds like you are more than happy and fulfilled by your choice. And now for ROAD RAGE…I believe I finished the book in two days, it was that addictive. Your hero Derek Summers has a problem with anger management which is unusual for the hero of a romance novel. What made you decide to give Derek such an aggressive personality trait?

Jessi: All good heroes have areas in which they are imperfect. Some common examples include extreme protective instincts (read alpha male), workaholic, commitment-phobe, jock who gives more of his heart to his sport than the women in his life, and on and on. Many of the imperfections have plus sides that turn us romance addicts on. The uber-protective male has the dominance needed to win the heart of the woman who doesn’t trust easily. The workaholic has the determination needed to work through relationship challenges. The commitment-phobe can share his free-spirited nature with the repressed heroine, etc.

I looked at anger, an ugly imperfection if ever there was one, and thought about the flip side. What makes a character angry? Is there ever a justification for anger? How could a heroine help a hero work through his anger? Can anger ever be sexy? Romantic? Answering those questions I learned who Derek was and why his story absolutely had to be told.

I enjoyed reading a different type of romance hero. Cami, by contrast to Derek, is a people-pleaser. She has some emotional baggage which defines her personality and – interesting twist – is terrified of driving on the interstate due to an event from her teen years. I have to admit I prefer taking back roads to the freeway any day, but Cami’s aversion is obsessive. What prompted you to come up with such a unique disorder?

Jessi: Um. I started writing ROAD RAGE soon after I was in an accident on the freeway. Fortunately, the accident wasn’t serious, but my daughter had been in the car with me, and I got to thinking about how much worse it could have been. I was a bit gun shy about driving on the freeway after that, especially merging at high speeds, which is how the accident happened. I’m also a bit of a people pleaser, though the older I get the less I care what others think of me. So Cami is an extension of myself. She’s definitely a people pleaser with some baggage, but her flipside is that she’s compassionate enough to look past Derek’s anger and see the man hurting deep beneath that prickly veneer.

I’m glad the accident wasn’t serious, but I can certainly understand how and why that would shake you up!

There’s also a paranormal element to ROAD RAGE which allows the book to work on multiple levels. Without giving too much away, part of Cami and Derek’s connection is related to a dream state (during which a lot of sexy shenanigans take place 🙂 ). Both Cami and Derek behave differently than they do in the waking world, almost direct parallels of their flesh and blood selves. Intentional?

Jessi: Cami’s excuse for acting different (freer, less cautious) is that she has no memory of who she is or what she’s doing in Derek’s room during the night-time hours. Derek’s excuse is he believes he’s dreaming and that Cami is his very own personal dream girl. They both get a chance to let down their walls and let the other in. Then, when Cami wakes from her coma and no longer appears to Derek at night, they realize what they gained from each other and realize how their lives need to change. So, yeah, intentional. The paranormal aspect serves as a mirror to show the characters what they could have if they change.

Let’s talk about research. I was amazed by the amount you must have done in relation to several plot points in the book – motor vehicle law and, especially, ICU procedure and medical care for head trauma patients. Did you use mostly online sources for your research?

Jessi: I have a private investigator (PI) friend who met with me over several cups of coffee to talk about road rage laws and consequences. In fact, the police lieutenant I wrote into the book is based on this friend. He was a dear and even found California-specific laws and procedures, so I could make Derek’s consequences as realistic as possible. For the medical aspects, I drew on some of my training in speech and hearing sciences. I was fortunate enough as an audiologist to work in hospitals with people who had suffered injuries like Cami’s.

Do you have a favorite scene in the novel?

Jessi: The first sex scene. The sex scenes are always my favorites!

LOL! From start to finish, how long did it take you to write ROAD RAGE?

Jessi: It started as a 20,000 word novella that I wrote in a few weeks. I submitted it to agents and had my absolute top choice for an agent reject it but say, if this were longer and the characters more developed, it would be great. So I took her advice and turned it into a 78,000 word novel. By that time, I had found a wonderful publishing home at Lyrical, so I never resubmitted to the agent, but I’ll be forever grateful to her for the encouragement.

When you’re developing a novel, do you have a system you follow? Are you a plotter, panster, or somewhere in between?

Jessi: I’m a pantser who loves worksheets. I don’t outline per se, but at the start of each scene I make notes about whose pov the scene is in, what their goal is (characters MUST have a goal in every scene or there can be no genuine conflict), what gets in the way of that goal, what action takes place in the scene, and how the scene ends so the reader MUST keep reading (hook). The tops of my scenes look like this:

POV:

GOAL:

WGW:

ACTION:

HOOK:

If I take a few minutes to fill that information in, I can usually write the scene pretty quickly. By now it’s such a habit that I can hold the information in my mental queue. I still write it all out though, if I’m struggling with a particular scene. It really helps me.

Great process! Do you have any projects in the works you’d like to tell us about?

Jessi: I’m writing the second novel in my Highland Wishes series that started with WISHING FOR A HIGHLANDER (Lyrical Press, January 2013). THE WOLF AND THE HIGHLANDER tells the story of Anya, the villainess in book 1. It’s this close to being done *fingers almost touching*. When I write the end, I’ll start on a novella that will be a prequel to the series (Constance and Wilhelm’s story).

ROAD RAGE is a contemporary departure from my Highland time-travels. I have another contemporary, JADE’S SPIRIT that I plan on publishing next year, but first, I need to wrap up Highland Wishes book 2.

Okay, rapid-fire round time:

Favorite day of the week: Wednesday (This is the day I always have the most time to write)

Favorite food: cupcakes

Favorite color: blue

Favorite music group/band: Third Day

Favorite animal: horse

Dream vacation gifted to you by a fairy godmother: One week alone with my laptop in an Alaskan cabin with Wi-Fi

If I couldn’t be a writer, I’d want to be: an audiologist

Thanks, Jessi. It was fun having you here today (and that Alaskan cabin sounds divine!). I wish you much success with ROAD RAGE!

Thanks for having me, Mae! I loved your questions, and I’m so glad you liked ROAD RAGE!

AUTHOR BIO
Jessi lives with her husband and children in the Seattle area. In addition to writing paranormal romance, she’s a wife, a mom, an audiologist, a church-goer, a Ford driver, a PC user, and a coffee snob. Her guiding tenet in her writing is that good triumphs over evil, but not before evil gives good one heck of a run for its money. The last time she imagined a world without romance novels, her husband found her crouched in the corner, rocking.

Jessi Gage is also the author of WISHING FOR A HIGLANDER

Look for Jessi at the following haunts:
Website | Blog | Facebook Fan Page | Twitter | Goodreads

ROAD RAGE BUY LINKS
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
iTunes
Lyrical Press

A Pen Pal Welcome to Christina Cole

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Mae Clair

I’m pleased to have guest blogger Christina Cole here today. Christina and I connected after I read her novel, HAPPILY EVER AFTER. How can you resist a title like that? Well, I couldn’t, and I’m glad I didn’t. Immediately after reading it, I contacted Christina and invited her to guest on my blog. She has a new release coming up in August called SUMMERTIME, so the “timing” was perfect.

Please welcome author Christina Cole as she takes control of my pen for the day! 🙂

~ooOOoo~

Summertime is Coming!

Here in the midwest — I live in Missouri — it’s been a long and bitterly cold winter. I don’t like snow and ice, and unfortunately we had not inches of the cold stuff, but FEET of it this year.

We struggled through a horrible blizzard in December. Unfortunately I was away from home when it hit, and I had to drive forty miles in it. Truly, it was one of the worst experiences of my life. Visibility was no more than a foot, and I was gripping the steering wheel so tight my knuckles were whiter than the huge flakes coming down. As soon as I reached home, I burst into tears and collapsed in my husband’s arms, so shaken up I couldn’t do anything but cry. I cried for hours afterward. To say it was a nerve-wracking experience would be quite an understatement.

Then, in February, two more blizzards hit. When the first one came, we were both safely home, warm and cozy. We weren’t so lucky a few days later when the next one came. Yes, we knew bad weather was on the way, but due to a family emergency we had no choice but to get out, head for the hospital, and pray we’d be able to make it back home later. We did…but barely. We had to “abandon ship” — well, abandon vehicle — about a block from the house. Two days later, we finally got the car shoveled out and safely home again.

We went through another blast of winter the following week. Things got better for a little while…just an inch or two of snow, here and there, now and then. Lots of frigid temperatures though. Oh, how I looked forward to March and the arrival of spring!

March came…but spring didn’t. The snow and ice and cold lingered on, right into April. We had several inches more snow toward mid-month, and winter wasn’t over yet. Although we did have a few warm, sunny days at the first of May, incredibly, the snow returned for one final wintry blast.

Yep. Snow. The month of May. Even though I’ve lived my entire life in the midwest and have seen a lot of weather extremes, I couldn’t wrap my brain around those words — together. For the record, yes, it has snowed here in May before. The weathermen quickly dug through the archives and informed us all that snow had fallen in Missouri in May of 1935.

Was winter finished with us then? Almost…but not quite. On Mother’s Day, it didn’t snow, but it did frost. Temperatures fell down to the upper 20s Farenheit.

Brrrr! What a long and miserable winter it was!

Throughout those long, cold, snowy days, I kept my thoughts focused on summertime. I imagined hot days with the sun burning down upon the earth. I thought of brightly-colored sunflowers dancing in the breeze. I dreamed of fragrant summer nights with moonlight and stars, and I conjured up images of lush green fields, azure skies, and sunlight rippling over the surface of a lake.

All of these fanciful bits and pieces came together in my writing as I told a tale of love. Summertime became a season of hopes and dreams, a season of passion. Could it also be a season of forgiveness?

Here’s a quick little peek at the story of
SUMMERTIME
coming in August from
Secret Cravings Pubishing

Linn Sparks wanted all life had to offer. Fame, fortune, glamour and excitement. She found it as a star of the stage at the Crown Theater in San Francisco.

For Ed Ferguson, life was far less complicated. All he wanted was Linnie Mae, but she’d left him standing alone at the altar seven years before when she’d run off to pursue her dreams.

Now, it’s 1914, war is breaking out in Europe, and Linn Sparks has come home to Brookfield, Kansas.

But coming back means facing a lot of unpleasant realities: a strained relationship with a father who never wanted her, a mother whose grasp on sanity is slipping away, and the feelings she still has for the love she left behind.

Ed still wants Linnie Mae, but he knows she won’t stay. How can he spend the summer being near her and not get his heart broken again?

Between them, passions flare in the heat of SUMMERTIME.

~~~~

For more on Christina’s historical romances, please visit her at

Time for Love
Facebook: Christina Cole
Twitter: @KCChristinaCole

Wizards with Words: Jane Wakely and Christina’s Bear

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Mae Clair

It’s an exciting Tuesday, when I can introduce a new Wizards with Words author. Jane Wakely has visited my blog before, but this is the first I’ve had an opportunity to interview her. She’s here today with her new paranormal/shifter romance, CHRISTINA’S BEAR. And you know how I love the paranormal/shifter stuff, right? Sit back and enjoy!

~ooOOoo~

Let’s start with what first attracted you to writing. When did you realize it was something you wanted to do?

When I look back, I can’t think of a time when I wasn’t writing (except for my almost twenty year break as an adult—and even then I was still creating in my head!) I’ve always enjoyed writing and creating things with words and it’s what attracted me—and convinced me to come back! Early on, I knew I wanted to write, but as I got older I let fear and doubt force me to give up my dream. Luckily, one day I jumped in with both feet and decided to try! 🙂

Good for you! As an author, you write in multiple romance genres and varying heat levels. Do you find it hard to switch between a paranormal and a contemporary, or a sweet romance and a sensual one?

I don’t find it hard to switch between genres. Usually when an idea comes to me, it’s very clear about which genre it belongs in and I go with it. Heat level is a bit different. I have one erotic short and one sweet one (the rest are in the middle.) I prefer to write sensual/spicy scenes, so both of those stories were a challenge—one because I had to add so much more than usual, the other because I had to take out so much! Usually my characters stay where I’m comfy and hang-out in the sensual/spicy zone, but if they pull me somewhere else, I go with it!

Please share the blurb for your current release.

CHRISTINA’S BEAR
Paranormal/Shifter Romance

Christina Mills’ loud, bubbly personality gains her numerous friends and dating opportunities. Unfortunately, being labeled a “party girl” and dating a lot can give people the wrong impression. When Christina’s dates learn the truth about her, they soon move on.

James “Bull” Johnson is a restless bear shifter ready to settle down. At the urging of his friend, he relocates to the mid-sized town of Chestnut Rock. Bull hopes the nearby forest and being near his best friend will help soothe his bear and cure some of his loneliness.

When Bull and Christina meet, he recognizes her as his mate. However, their first two encounters leave Bull thinking Christina is afraid of him and Christina is confused by her feelings toward the stranger. Both Bull and Christina have secrets and insecurities that keep them guarded, but if they can trust one another, they’ll discover they’re made for each other.

Without giving too much away, do you have a favorite scene in the novel?

I love, love, LOVE this couple so it’s really hard to pick a fave scene. I think I’m going to have to go with the Epilogue and all I can tell you is they live happily ever after! 😉

I love HEAs, so that’s good to know! How long does it usually take you to finish a manuscript?

I write novellas/shorts so if I really hustle I can finish a manuscript in two weeks, but it usually takes me three or four. Life usually gets in the way of my hustle! LOL

I hear that! When you start a new project do you usually begin with characters or plot first?

It depends on the story, but most of the time the plot comes first.

What is your next project on the horizon?

Right now I’m working on Book 6 in my Chestnut Rock Shifters Series. (CHRISTINA’S BEAR is book 2!) Next I’ll work on the final planned book, Book 7!

You are definitely busy! And now a few speed round questions:

Plotter or panster: Pantser with a few notes!

Favorite time of year: Fall/Winter

Favorite animal: Tiger

Favorite type of music: I listen to whatever TG (Teen Girl) plays for me! LOL

Favorite spot to write: I have an office, but when no one’s home I prefer the kitchen table!

A book you’ve read more than once: Annabelle’s Courtship by Lucy Monroe

Dream vacation gifted to you by a fairy godmother: I’d like to visit England, Ireland and Scotland!

They’re on my list too. Before we wrap things up today, is there any sage writing advice you’d like to share?

Patience is a virtue in this business! While you’re waiting, keep writing! 🙂

Well said!

Excerpt CHRISTINA’S BEAR
Christina Mills looked around the now half empty apartment and couldn’t help the sadness sweeping over her. She and Jenn lived here together for two years and now Jenn had been completely gone for two weeks. Christina knew they couldn’t live together forever, but she’d honestly thought it would be much longer before either one of them found the one.

Once Jenn and Matt had worked out their differences, Jenn’s belongings disappeared little by little until her friend finally admitted she was moving in with Matt. Christina was very happy for the two of them—and if she was honest, a little jealous. Not of Matt, of what Jenn found with Matt. Someone to love her unconditionally. Christina often wondered if she would ever find a perfect match.

Making friends was easy. Her height combined with her trim body and large breasts always gained the attention of men, but she’d kept most of them in the friend category. The ones that became boyfriends quickly tired of her bubbly—sometimes loud—personality. Looking for love resulted in dating often and had gained her the reputation of being a fun party girl. Unfortunately, many people made the mistake of thinking she was easy and slept around. Jenn was the only one who knew the truth and now Jenn was gone. Christina felt very alone.

Buy CHRISTINA’S BEAR from:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
All Romance Ebooks

Author bio
Jane has always been a writer. Even when she took a break from it for a few years, she couldn’t keep the stories from filling her head. As an avid romance reader, she finally decided her stories needed to be free, and she started writing again.

Reading and liking all genres of romance; it makes sense that she would write that way too. Her stories range from sweet to erotic, contemporary to paranormal, and a bunch in-between. She loves all romance genres, and all levels of spice.

Jane lives on the east coast of the United States with her loving husband, daughter and their Miniature Dachshund.

Look for Jane at the following haunts:
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads