Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Welcome Misty Simon

Please welcome fellow author, Misty Simon.

What is your writing style or schedule? 

I write every day or at least I try to. I have a full-time job so I write in the evenings or on breaks.

You must have a lot of energy! Where do you actually write? 

In a big fluffy chair I just got for my birthday! It is divine!!!

Sounds comfy! Do you write linearly or not? 

Absolutely and completely linearly. I admire those who can write out of order but that is so not me J
   
What sort of other activities keep you from actually writing? Oh, where to begin? LOL. I have a seventeen year old without a license who dances three times a week and is also in the spring musical. I have a full-time job and have been married for twenty-two years. I also have two small rambunctious dogs. Pick one! 

Ha! I know the feeling. Do you have support, either from family and friends or a writing group? 

I have support from all of the above. I belong to the lovely Roses in the garden at The Wild Rose Press, I have an amazing writing group through RWA as well as a smaller writing group of amazing friends. My family is 100% behind me and I couldn’t appreciate them more if I tried!

I understand. We can't do this without support (and I don't think enough people realize that). How long does it normally take you to write a novel? 

Anywhere from one to three months. It depends on if I have a deadline and a burning need to write this particular story.

Wow, you write quickly! Who or what are your inspirations? 

I’m inspired by every things from walking down the street and smiling at people to a bright flower in the middle of the snow. I try to take the perspective that everything is beautiful in its own way if you look at it from the right angle and tilt my head when necessary. I am also inspired by my child who just got accepted to the Savannah College of Art and Design. She’s following her dream and thanked me for showing her that it was possible, doable and shouldn’t be ignored no matter what you have to do to achieve it. 

That's wonderful! Congratulations to you and to her!  If there’s a single aspect to writing that really frustrates you, what is it? 

Oh! Not typing fast enough! Sometimes my brain runs faster than my fingers and losing that marvelous piece of a sentence because it slipped away makes me crazy!

I hate when that happens. Given unlimited resources, what would be your ideal writing environment? 

A she shed with French doors and a weather vane on top.

LOL.Tell me about your latest book. 

Liv and Breathe is set in a small town in Central Pennsylvania. Liv runs a camp for inner city boys over the summer to give them a chance to explore a different way of life and give them skills to thrive with. When those same boys are falsely accused of tagging a neighboring farm and letting animals loose, she has to call the one man who holds her dream in his hands and can destroy it with one stroke of his pen on a sale agreement.

Where did you get your inspiration for your book? 

We have a camp near my house that houses girls and boys for the summer from inner cities and I thought that it would be wonderful opportunity to have two people who are total opposites come to grips with their pasts while helping these kids.

Do you have a favorite character and if so, who and why? 

I loved Liv and Alex in this book so much. They struggled and they fought but under it all they were going for the same thing.

Your book sounds great. What else are you working on now? 

I’m working on my next mystery for the Adventures In Ghostsitting Series that I write. Mel Hargrove owns a junkyard and everything in it has a ghost attached. They get into tons of trouble and are tons of fun!



Bio:
Misty Simon always wanted to be a storyteller…preferably behind a Muppet. Animal was number one, followed closely by Sherlock Hemlock… Since that dream didn’t come true, she began writing stories to share her world with readers, one laugh at a time. She knows how to hula, was classically trained to sing opera, co-wrote her high school Alma Mater,and can’t touch raw wood. Never hand her a Dixie cup with that wooden spoon/paddle thing. It’s not pretty.
Touching people’s hearts and funny bones are two of her favorite things, and she hopes everyone at least snickers in the right places when reading her books. She lives with her husband, daughter, and two insane dogs in Central Pennsylvania where she is hard at work on her next novel or three. She loves to hear from readers so drop her a line at misty@mistysimon.com.

Links:

Blurb:
Olivia Jameson runs a summer camp called Breathe, giving inner-city kids a chance to see a different life. When the man who owned the camp died, leaving his dream to his son, Liv took charge, and the work means the world to her.
As far as Alex Campbell is concerned, the camp is a hands-off tax write-off. But when Liv calls because her boys are accused of property damage, Alex returns to the place he hasn't called home since age twelve…and to a girl he barely remembers, now a woman who stirs him like no city sophisticates ever have.
This is Liv's livelihood, her mission, her dream. Sharing it with a man who doesn't understand the impact is frustrating. But as he begins learning truths that were hidden from him, both Liv and Alex may have a change of heart. Can Liv open up her life one more time to love?
Excerpt:

The clink and clatter of silverware in the busy diner did nothing to block out the thoughts churning through Olivia Jameson’s head. She had made the call earlier this morning, and now she would have to live with the consequences. Hoping she’d survive the experience, she had her doubts it would be easy.
“What can I get you, hon?” Betty, the owner of Petri’s Dish, asked with pad and pencil in hand.
“Just coffee.” At the thought of the storm she may have created, Liv’s shoulders drooped.
Betty’s eyes narrowed behind her thick glasses. “Tell me what’s wrong. You never just order coffee, especially when I have my pineapple salsa pancakes on the Specials board.” Her hand went to her hip, while her expression became mutinous. “So you’re not still worrying about that little ruckus over at the Beckham farm, are you? I told you it would all blow over.”
Unfortunately, it wasn’t blowing over. In fact, it had just gotten a whole lot bigger. “They’re pressing charges.” It was as simple and as complicated as that.
“What?” Bustling around the counter, Betty plopped down on the stool next to Liv. A crowd began to gather the second she did. She never sat down for anything, not even when she wasn’t working. “You better tell me what in the world is going on, right now.”
No matter what she said or did at this point, Liv knew the entire story was going to come out soon enough. Such was life in a community their size. Sometimes she wished she lived in Kissinger, the next town over, where everyone seemed to mind their own business.
She might as well take a chance and tell her side before Mr. High and Mighty came rolling into town—if he could unglue himself from his society life long enough to take any interest.
“Some boys in town say they saw my boys over in Beckham’s pastures trying to tip over cows. When these town kids came along, they said they spooked the camp boys, who took off running. According to the accusers, that’s how the fence was broken and how the alpacas got out and ran away. Beckham still hasn’t found two of them.”
By this time, there was a solid crowd of about twenty people hemming Liv and Betty in at the counter. As much as Liv appreciated the looks of outrage for her camp boys, and for the situation in general, she didn’t blame the Beckhams for pressing charges. Especially with the graffiti Mr. Beckham had told her was spray-painted on the side of his barn.
She just couldn’t wrap her head around the idea that her boys would do something so destructive when they knew the consequences and the punishment for not toeing the line.
“I don’t believe it,” Betty declared, and had the majority of the other people agreeing with her both verbally and by nodding their heads. “There’s no way the boys at Breathe would jeopardize their time here by doing something so stupid.”
Liv would have said the same thing to her boss, Alex Campbell, this morning if he’d picked up his phone. Instead she’d left him a message asking him to please come to the farm, and she’d explain when he got here. It would be far better to handle this face to face. That way she could plead the case for her boys and make him understand more easily than she could convey over email. She didn’t want him here, but she wasn’t able to figure out a way to avoid it.
“I agree,” Liv said to the diner at large, but worry still pulled her eyebrows together. “The problem is how do I prove it? I don’t want to accuse anyone else, and I can’t prove without a shadow of a doubt that the boys were all in their beds last night. Not even David. This is a huge mess, just in time for the annual cook-off.”
“Don’t you worry about the cook-off,” Tim from the mechanic’s shop said. “That’s all taken care of, except for a few details. We’ll figure something out with the boys, too. I’m coming there today to work on that car with them. I’ll ask some questions that maybe you can’t ask.”
There was a chorus of agreement while people all went their separate ways. She really appreciated the support, but who was going to be there when Mr. Campbell came riding in to shut down the camp because she wasn’t doing a good job as the director? She couldn’t—and wouldn’t—lose Breathe, a camp that had been around for almost eighty years. It housed underprivileged boys from major cities over the summer, giving them a chance to see real grass and real cows, to ride horses and learn skills and self-worth that would hopefully keep them out of gangs and make them productive members of society.

Buy link:
https://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/paperback-books/6488-liv-and-breathe-paperback.html

Monday, February 25, 2019

The College Decision

Well, Banana Girl is officially going to college. In September. Like, we’ve committed and everything. 

We knew she was going. She applied, and was accepted to, five schools. So she was definitely going somewhere. We’ve known that since November, when the first acceptance came in. She’d even narrowed it down to two of the five, although she wasn’t willing to turn down the other three. It was just a matter of her deciding between her two favorites.

I had a clear preference, and she knew it, even though I tried to hide it. PSA, I don’t hide things well (yeah, I know, you knew that already). But I attempted to provide her objective guidance and let her come to her own decision. My husband took her to the Admitted Student Days at both schools—one right after the other, which made comparisons easy.

And from the moment she came back from the first visit, I knew her decision was made, even though she didn’t know it at the time. And it was not my preference. But you know what? After listening to her talk about the school, after getting a report from my husband that provided the answers to all of my questions (and some of them were BIG questions), and after studying her face and mannerisms while she talked about that school, I knew it was the right place for her. 

And I was okay with it.

Then she went to see the other school, the one I’d thought was her first choice. And she just didn’t click with it, despite her best attempts (and even though she liked the food there better, which, if you know Banana Girl, is a BIG deal).

Still, she wouldn’t make an immediate decision. 

If you have college-aged children, you have some idea of the pins and needles we were on until she decided. Everyone talks about how “you’ll know immediately” when you visit the “right” school. Yes, that’s true. But it’s a big decision, and my kid is a thinker and a planner and an evaluator. So even though she knew, she needed to be sure.

She surprised me on my birthday with her decision, and it was the best present I could ask for (although my necklace is beautiful and I love it!).

So I’ll have an empty nest in September. Now, to figure out how to fill up all that time…

Thursday, February 21, 2019

Welcome Jean Grant


Why the prequel and not a sequel?

When I wrote A Hundred Kisses it was set to be a standalone book. In fact, I had been writing stories set in 12thcentury Scotland for over a decade. After three practice novels, and much learning of the craft and business, I decided to leap forward to the 13th century and sprinkle in paranormal/mystical elements. Therein I found the magic! From that exploration arose Deirdre and Alasdair’s story in A Hundred Kisses: a ruthless baron, a dark past, a curse, deep secrets, and the mystical power of the Ancients. Not bad for a first book! (A little plug for Rosalind Ashford who narrated the audio book— her voice swept me away.)

I felt compelled to dig deeper into the mystical Silver Veil because Deirdre’s mother, Gwyn, also had a story to tell. And it so happened to be a pivotal time period for the [end of the] Norse (Viking) reign. The stars aligned and what came forth was a story about a merciful Healer, a scarred man hellbent on vengeance, and several unrelenting Nordmen. 

What next? I’m writing the final book in the trilogy (hint: it’s about Deirdre and Alasdair’s child). Each story in my “hundred” series explores the powers of the Ancients: Healing (water), Feeling (fire), Seeing (Wind), and the grounding force of Earth. Each book is steeped in Scottish-Norse-English history. I’m looking forward to wrapping up my medieval Scotland adventure and excited to see where the next inkling takes me…

A Hundred Breaths 
by Jean M. Grant

Social Media links:
Website  https://www.jeanmgrant.com/
Twitter  https://twitter.com/JeanGrant05
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jeanmgrantauthor/
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16582543.Jean_M_Grant
Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jean-m-grant


Buy links:
(links are in the quick link hyperlink andthe long URL; use either)

Amazon  





Bio:
Jean’s background is in science and she draws from her interests in history, nature, and her family for inspiration. She writes historical and contemporary romances and women’s fiction. She also writes articles for family-oriented travel magazines. When she’s not writing or chasing children, she enjoys tending to her flower gardens, hiking, and doing just about anything in the outdoors.

Blurb:

Healing his heart…with her last breath.

1263, Scotland

Simon MacCoinneach’s vengeance runs deep. The blade is the only way to end the blood-thirsty Nordmen’s reign upon Scottish soil. His soul might be lost, but the mystical Healer he kidnaps from the isles could be the answer for his ailing mother…and his heart.

Isles-born Gwyn reluctantly agrees to a marriage alliance with this heathen Scot in return for the sanctuary of her younger brother from her abusive Norse father. Her brother’s condition is beyond the scope of her Ancient power, for larger healings steal breaths of life from her own body.

As Simon and Gwyn fight to outwit her madman father and a resentful Norse betrothed, Gwyn softens Simon’s heart with each merciful touch. Gwyn’s Seer sister foresees a bloody battle—and an end to the Nordmen—but Simon will also die. Will Gwyn save Simon on the battlefield even if it means losing her last breath?

Excerpt:
“I’m your wife, and still I am guarded?” 
Simon shrugged though she couldn’t see. He’d given up on excuses. “What must I do to prove I won’t flee? I signed your marriage contract. I said my vows.” Her voice broke on those words. 
Was she crying? He laid the tray of food on her table and approached. He didn’t touch her, as much as he wanted to link his arm within hers as they’d done during their walks. He reached inside his ganache and withdrew her small, simple dagger. Unadorned with jewels or carvings, it possessed a bone hilt and a blade worn from use. Likely from tree limbs, flowers, and household use. His smith had sharpened it and cleaned the hilt. 
“Here,” he said, placing it in her lap. Gildy had retrieved the sheath from Gwyn’s laundered gown. 
Gwyn stared at it, her fingertips dancing butterfly wings hovering over the hilt. After a moment, she drew her hand around it and pulled it from its leather sheath. She rose and whirled on him, the dagger pointed out before her, barely pressing into his chest. 
He didn’t retreat as he met her fiery, misty gaze. 
She made no move to remove the dagger’s tip. 
“A smidge to the center, Gwyn, and you’ll be square over my blackened heart.” He held her glower. The heat blazed in her entrancing blue eyes like the devil. He fought a smile.


Other book: 

A Hundred Kisses (book 2 in the trilogy), also available: Amazonand other online retailers.

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Welcome Amber Daulton

Please welcome my fellow Wild Rose Press author, Amber Daulton, to my blog. I asked her a bunch of questions regarding her writing, and I hope you enjoy her answers as much as I did.

What is your writing style or schedule?

My writing style leans towards seriousness and sarcasm. I love witty dialogue and snappy comebacks, and I prefer writing in 3rdperson in duel hero/heroine point of views with proper scene and chapter breaks with each POV switch. It irks me when I’m reading a book from one POV and then out of nowhere the story jumps into another character’s head without any warning. I promise never to do that to my readers.
I try to write everyday, and I feel off-kilter if something prevents me from working. I don’t set a word count quota for myself, but I do set personal deadlines in which I try to have chapters done on a certain date, so I can have the entire story completed by another date. Sometimes I make it; sometimes I don’t.

Where do you actually write?

My laptop crashed a while back, so now I’m working on an old desktop computer in my office. Bookshelves cover each wall, and I have cute little decorations like stuffed animals, shiny wall hangings, seashells, and butterflies everywhere. 
My professional-looking stained desk somehow became horribly scratched up a few years ago when my husband and I moved to our new house, so my hubby sanded it down and I painted it an off-white color and drew ivy and flowers on the legs. It’s very whimsical now and fits great with my frou-frou decorations.

Do you write linearly or not?

Well, that depends. Since I always plot out each chapter/scene before I start writing, I can usually write from beginning to end without a problem.
Sometimes the characters take over and derail my plan, however, so I have to whip them back into gear and make them follow the plot I’ve established.
This doesn’t happen often, but I really get irritated when I’ve written myself into a corner even though I’ve plotted the scene beforehand. To solve that bit of writer’s block, I jump a few chapters ahead and start writing those scenes, leaving a big blank spot in my novel. When the later sections are done, I go back and fill in the blank areas.

What sort of other activities keep you from actually writing?

Everyday life. My husband, Greg, cooks and mows the grass, but I do the sweeping and other cleaning. We share the laundry and gardening responsibilities. We love binge-watching TV shows—our favorite is Supernatural—and we often borrow movies from our local library. Besides that, I like to read and create scrapbooks, so that takes up some of my time.

Do you have support, either from family and friends or a writing group?

Greg is very supportive and always reads my work. I belong to a few online writing groups (I mostly frequent Marketing for Romance WritersRom-Critters, and my publisher’s groups), and the authors there are always willing to swap critiques, give advice, and share their own personal experiences about writing and life in general.

How long does it normally take you to write a novel?

It depends on the length I plan to write, the research I need to do, and the amount of edits each book will need. On average, I can usually churn out a novella (say 15 to 35k WC) in maybe a month or so. For a full-length novel (80k plus), it usually takes me three or four months to finish the first draft.

If there’s a single aspect to writing that really frustrates you, what is it?

The hardest thing for me is deciding on character names. Now, that might not sound like a big deal, but the names have to perfectly fit with the characters I see in my mind. I feel stumped and lose my creativity if I assign a name to someone and it just doesn’t feel right. I usually choose the names based on their personality, physical characteristics, family dynamics/heritage, the time period of the novel, or just what I find sexy! I sometimes spend hours, if not days, just scouring through baby name books and websites for the best names.

Given unlimited resources, what would be your ideal writing environment?

I would like a small, cozy room with lots of natural light. I also need silence to work. I just can’t concentrate when people are talking to me or around me, and I find music distracting. Repetitive background noise, however, like the sound of car traffic and static on the TV is soothing and helps me get into my zone.

Tell me about your latest book.

Erica was in a bad relationship and finally found the courage to break free. Even though she found help and the love of her life in Willow Springs, Vermont, the past still weighed on her shoulders.
Dylan has retired from the New York music scene, and he now teaches kids how to play instruments. He’s gotten his life back together after all the drama of being a semi-star. 
They have an instant connection, and their love of music drew them together.

Where did you get your inspiration for your book?

I love small town romances, especially ones with an edge and a little bit of danger weaved in. When plotting this story, I first pictured a young woman running away from the big city to escape her abusive boyfriend. I mostly write romantic suspense, so this idea worked. I think a lot of readers can sympathize with such a situation, especially those who have experienced neglect from someone claiming to love them.

I also love stories about music and rock stars, but I don’t like the cheating and drugs that go along with the lifestyle. I haven’t published a story featuring a musician yet, so I figured I should get on the ball and do it.
Despite the dark undertones, this story is fun, uplifting, and hot. The characters are real and flawed. I really enjoyed writing it, and I hope readers will love it.

Do you have a favorite character and if so, who and why?

Dylan is my favorite character from Lyrical Embrace. He’s both wild and outspoken, but also responsible and polite. Dylan and Erica have had a rough time, and they find a kindred spirit in each other.

What are you working on now?

Last year, I published Arresting Mason, book one in the Arresting Onyxseries, and my first book with The Wild Rose Press. Lyrical Embraceis book four in the Deerbourne Innseries, a multi-author collection of novellas. 

The next installment of the Arresting Onyx series should hopefully be out in late 2019. Arresting Jeremiah follows hard-nosed parole officer Jim Borden and his obsession Calista Barlow as they stick their noses where they don’t belong and fall deep into the trouble with the criminal organization known as Onyx.

The Arresting Onyx series is a set of five romantic suspense books with a standalone HEA for each rough-and-tumble hero and their spunky heroines. 


While I’m in the process of getting the Arresting Onyx series published, I’m also editing a series of unpublished vampire novels that are truly dear to my heart.


Lyrical Embrace 
  
Blurb 

Out-of-work violinist Erica Timberly decides enough is enough. She leaves her abusive boyfriend and flees the big city, but then her car breaks down in the middle of the night. Though wary of men, she accepts help from Dylan Haynes, a stranger driving by on the road, and soon recognizes him as the sexy former drummer of her favorite indie rock band. Maybe, just maybe, her run of bad luck is finally turning around.
Music teacher Dylan Haynes knows Erica is in trouble, and her black eye is only the first clue. The stubborn yet vulnerable woman needs a friend, but he’s determined to give her everything she deserves. 
Will Erica listen to the music in her heart and trust Dylan, or will her past always threaten her future?

 

Excerpt


Erica leaned up and combed her fingers through her hair. “I’ve never made love outside before. It’s a surreal experience.”
“We can do it wherever you want. In an elevator, in an alley, in my car. I’m game anywhere and everywhere for as long as you want me.”
“I want you so much it hurts.”
Dylan thumbed her knuckles and hoped she meant that. “I don’t know how you feel about labels, but I haven’t had a girlfriend in years. I’ve just had flings, but I want more than that with you. I want us to be with each other and no one else. I want a relationship with you.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “I feel divided in two. A part of me thinks we’re moving too fast, but another part says to jump in with both feet. I want something real with you too. I don’t want to feel dirty after we fool around. Just make me happy. Will you do that, Dylan?”
Her soft, pain-filled words struck Dylan like a dagger in his gut, and he bit the insides of his cheeks to steady his features.
Her ex-boyfriend had probably called her names and degraded her after they would find release in each other’s body, and the bastard likely never cared if she reached climax at all.
“I understand, Erica. I promise to treat you with nothing but respect, and I will do my very best to make you happy. I swear you will always scream your head off in pleasure every time I touch you. I’m not the sort of man to get my jollies off and leave my girl hanging.”
Her lips twitched up in a grin. “That’s good to hear.”
“So are you my girl?”
“Yeah, I’m your girl.” Erica giggled and tapped her fingers on his chest. “How could I not be? You make a very compelling argument, but I will have to hold you to it. I’m definitely looking forward to screaming every time you touch me.”
“Let’s rest, and then we’ll play again. The night’s early, and I’ve only just begun.”


Buy Links

Barnes and Noble – https://bit.ly/2ChIhgR
Kobo – TBA
Google Play – TBA
The Wild Rose Press store – https://bit.ly/2AIkSFk

About the Author

Amber Daulton is the author of the romantic-suspense series Arresting Onyx and several standalone novellas. Her books are published through The Wild Rose Press and Books to Go Now, and are available in ebook, print on demand, audio, and foreign language formats. 
Amber lives in North Carolina with her husband and four demanding cats. Feel free to visit her at http://www.amberdaultonauthor.blogspot.com.

Social Media Links

Facebook Author Page – www.facebook.com/amber.daulton.author
Amazon Author Page – http://amzn.to/14JoZff