Guest Author Interview: Danielle Monsch

Alexis: Hi Danielle. Welcome to Happily Ever After Thoughts.  Thank you so much for coming.  Your latest release is a type of paranormal fantasy mix.  Could you tell us a little about Loving A Fairy Godmother.

Danielle: Thank you so much for having me! I’m always thrilled to get a chance to talk about my stories. Loving a Fairy Godmother is about the Cinderella story from the fairy godmother’s point of view – that is, if the fairy godmother was also dealing with her own romantic escapades while trying to ensure Cinderella got her Happily Ever After.

Alexis: That sounds so fun! Where did you get the idea for this story? 

Danielle: Usually my stories start with the characters. In the case of Loving a Fairy Godmother, the character who appeared to me was Tiernan, the hero of the story. This is one of those instances where I have no idea where he came from, he just popped into my head fully formed. There he was, this dashing rogue with dimples, who told me he was the only fairy godfather around.

So I started wondering why there was only one fairy godfather, and the rest of the story followed.

Alexis: You have to love a guy that’s masculine enough to be the only man in his profession J What are your favorite character traits of Reina and Tiernan?

Danielle: I love the pride Reina has in her work and how fair she is in her dealings with everyone. She is one of those people who commands respect, even as everyone may fear her just a little bit. J For Tiernan, well, Tiernan is just perfect. He has this roguish charm, but he has integrity and a core of steel. And don’t forget the dimples! 

Alexis: Believe me, I won’t. What kind of research did you do for this novel?

Danielle: This wasn’t a research story beyond rereading fairy tales. J just wanted to create a fairy tale ending for that staple of fairy tales, the fairy godmother. 

Alexis: That was so nice of you. Do you have any other romance novels in the works that we can look forward to?

Danielle: I do! My second story was released earlier this month, it’s called Pleasure Satellite. It’s an erotic Sci-fi story and has been released from Ellora’s Cave. 

Currently, I’m finishing up my very first novel – a Sword & Sorcery Paranormal Romance - which I’m going to try to get print published. After that’s done, I’ve got a few more ideas for the epub market, including a FWB ménage, a saucy take on Greek myths about a foul-mouthed nymph who is given the assignment to seduce a virgin, and my own take on Little Red Riding Hood.

Alexis: Fascinating ideas. And your current novels sound exciting too. What is it about romance novels that attracts you as a reader?

Danielle: I love romance and am a proud romance reader – in all of its incarnations. I don’t think there is anything more gratifying to read about than these two (or hey, sometimes more) people doing this dance of feelings and emotions and exploring what they mean to each other. And what makes romance so great is you can do this exploration in a variety of ways, from books that range from sexually chaste to sweat-inducing, and in any sub-genre that catches your interest.

I love, love. I love people falling in love. I love the variety in which I can write that. To my mind, romance is the best.

Alexis: I completely agree with you! There is something about love that is so satisfying. Thank you so much for visiting Happily Ever After Thoughts. We like talking about romance novels here and learning about the creative authors who write them J

Danielle: Thank you so much for inviting me. I’m always excited to talk about romance novels. This has been a great experience for someone as new as I am, and I hope I get the chance to come back again!

Danielle Monsch is a Romantic Geek Girl Writing in a Fantasy World. You can find her on the web at www.DanielleMonsch.com, www.twitter.com/DaniMonsch, www.facebook.com/DanielleMonsch

One random commenter will receive a copy of Loving a Fairy Godmother. Good Luck!

Alexis: Check out this excerpt from Loving a Fairy Godmother.

Excerpt:

“Godfather Tiernan—”

“You can just call me Tiernan,” he interrupted.

She tried again. “Godfather Tiernan—”

“”Didn’t Sara just tell you that you had to follow my directions?”

That pushed her over the edge. “Do you truly think you are going to secure a HEA when you haven’t been able to do it yet?”

He let out a derisive snort, but immediately realized that was a huge mistake. Her face lost her usual look of annoyance crossed with bemused tolerance, leaving pure ice in its place. “This is why men should not be allowed into the Godmother program. None of you have any respect for Happily Ever Afters.”

“I never said I didn’t believe in HEAs” he began, but she cut him off.

“Every case you’ve been on tells me you don’t believe, or else you would have tried once, just once, to get one!”

His hands slammed on the table as he leaned across it, his face coming inches from hers. “I’ve never tried because I believe in love! Humans need love so much, who the hell was I to screw up two people in love to get them to HEA status? I could never forgive myself if two people in love missed out on each other because of my actions!”

All anger fled her face, and a hesitant, unsure look came over features. “What do you think a HEA is?”

He drew in a deep breath, sitting down once again. “I think happily ever after is a nice way to end a story, but in the world I remember, it’s a waste.”

Her hand was halfway towards him before she seemed to remember their roles, and she pulled it back to her side. “Love is wonderful, but only love alone is incomplete. You can love someone, but they can ultimately not be right for you. Even in love, people can still be led to believe the worst of each other, still hurt each other, still decide they are better without the other,” she began, her words hesitant, as if she was trying to define to herself what it all meant as much as to him. “But the Happily Ever After is so much more. It’s finding your perfect match, love purified, refined, to such an extent that it can never be sundered. With a Happily Ever After, men can achieve greatness, as can all the generations who follow growing up in its shadow.”

“And you think jeopardizing the surety of a love match now is worth it for only the possibility of a Happily Ever After?” he asked, his voice gentle, reverent, wanting nothing to break this intimacy their words were creating.

“I do. In your view, maybe that seems cruel, but in my view, there is no greater tragedy then two people who almost make this connection but fall short in the end.”

Such a hard exterior to cover such a tender heart. “I’m not sure if I can believe as you do,” he said after considering her words. “But I never want Sara... you... to feel as if I let you down. After we get this situation behind us, I want you proud of the job I do.”

And as his breath caught at the rare smile she bestowed upon him just then, he knew all she had to do was keep smiling at him like that, and anything she wanted, whether it be his beliefs or his blood, he would give her.

Her smile faded, and the moment ended. Reina cloaked herself in her position of authority as she handed him the file that had been sitting on her desk. It was already open to show a picture of a blond girl, pretty and vibrant with a mouth full of straight white teeth, all of which was evident even underneath the dirt. “I looked over this case earlier, before I realized what was going on,” she said. “It is a good, solid HEA case. There are several challenges to overcome, but also several sources of help for the client. It is about as perfect as a case can be for this purpose, as evenly balanced as I’ve ever seen. No one can accuse the council of favoring either side. The girl’s name is Cinderella. She lives with an abusive Stepmother and two rotten spoiled stepsisters. She is a very kind, generous girl—though a little too much of a doormat, if you ask me—but outside of that, not really any other character flaws. She is much beloved in her village, children and small animals flock to her daily. In short, we exist to give HEAs to mortals like her.”

Tiernan read the file quickly, then flipped the page and took in the photo of the male who would supply the HEA. “A prince, huh? That’s pretty standard.”

“Indeed, but for the most part, we don’t mess with the classics here.” The pointed look she gave him told him he was one of the exceptions, and she wasn’t necessarily thrilled about it. Ah yes, completely back to normal.

He returned that look with a flirty smile. “I used to serve royalty, Godmother Reina. Believe me when I say, sometimes the large crown is to compensate for something.”

“Oh really? Well, I assume we can say the same thing about your sword, eh, knight?”

Maybe not completely back to normal after all. The second those words passed her lips her eyes went saucer wide, and Tiernan couldn’t say who was more shocked, him or Reina herself. There was no way he was letting this pass. His voice coming out a low growl, he replied, “Why, Reina, I never knew you were interested in the size of my sword. Anytime you want a private viewing, I will be more than happy to oblige.”

Alexis: Don’t forget to leave a comment for your chance to win this unique romance!

Guest Author Interview: Kim Watters

 Alexis: Hi Kim. Welcome to Happily Ever After Thoughts.  Thank you so much for coming and giving away a copy of On Wings of Love.  Can you start by telling us why you write inspirationals?

Kim:  Wow. Great question. I think the inspirational market picked me. I tend to write a little sweeter story and characters. I was at an impasse with Harlequin, having submitted to Super Romance and American and kept getting rejections so I had a conversation with God. He gave me the talent to write, but I needed a little help in finding a home for it. The next day, one of my loops announced that the Love Inspired line was going to six books a month and looking for submissions. Duoh! Homer Simpson moment. It didn’t get any clearer than that. I revised the manuscript and added the faith element, which wasn’t a stretch since I’m a Christian, and viola. Within months I sold.

Alexis: I think there might have been just a tad bit of Divine intervention in that sale J I loved the blurb on your website about Home Sweet Home. Can you tell our readers a little about this latest release ?

Kim: Sure. It’s about finding a home for Abby and forgiveness for Cole. The blurb says it best though. As creative as I am, I’m brain dead right now.

“Finally ready to settle down, Abby Bancroft has just inherited a place to put down roots. But her hopes for a successful bed-and-breakfast are placed on hold when she learns that her grandparents' run-down inn is in serious need of TLC. So is Cole Preston, the handsome contractor who offers to help make her dream a reality. His past mistakes won't let him consider settling in the close-knit town. Yet as he and Abby work together to repair the house, they also begin to mend each other's hearts. And they just may find that consulting their hearts is what creating a home is all about.”

Alexis: Where did you get the idea for this story?

Kim:  After my last story, which dealt with the subject of organ donation, I wanted to do something lighter. I’ve always loved Victorian mansions and thought it would be cool to own one and run a Bed & Breakfast. Since I can’t really do that, I decided to write about it.

Alexis: Great idea.  I’ll have to keep that in mind for my own writing; things I’d like to do but can’t J So with this book, who did you have more fun writing, Cole or Abby?

Kim:  Abby. She’s had so many tough breaks in life that every time I turned around, she had something else that she needed to tell me about her past. I had no idea she was a life guard in LA, or that she never really had a permanent home until she inherited the mansion from her grandparents.

Alexis: Don’t you just love it when your characters have a whole past life to delve into? But this isn’t your first published romance. Can you tell us a little about your other books?

Kim: Sure. Home At Last was my first novel published by Avalon Books.

Stake Your Claim also published by Avalon Books revolves around a small mining community in southern Arizona.

On Wings of Love, my first Love Inspired novel, deals with the subject of organ donation as I mentioned above.

I’ve also written a few short stories and will be putting them up on Amazon soon.

Alexis: Which of the books you’ve written has your favorite hero? Heroine?

Kim: Not a fair question. I love all my characters, although I really have a soft spot for all my heroes. I mean what’s not to love about them? I instill them with all the qualities that make the perfect hero with a few quirks and conflicts along the way. As for heroine? All of them as well. I can’t pick one as there’s a tiny piece of me in each one of them.

Alexis: You are such a good Mom.  No favorites for you ;-) Do you have any other romance novels in the works that we can look forward to?

Kim: I’m currently under contract with my third Love Inspired. I don’t have a release date yet as I’m still writing it. The tentative title is A Father’s Love and it deals with a child with leukemia.

Alexis: Wow, you definitely don’t shy away from the tough subjects.  I admire that and I think our readers will too. Thank you so much for visiting Happily Ever After Thoughts. We like talking about romance novels here and learning about the great people who write them J

Kim: Thanks so much for inviting me here. I love to hang out with you gals. Especially if there’s a beach , a pina colada and cabana boy to go along with it. J

Alexis: But of course!!  “Cabana boy!  Another round of Pina Coladas for the author and readers please.” While the cabana boy is getting the drinks, check out the excerpt below from Home Sweet Home.

Excerpt:

"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven."—Luke 6:37

"This is it?" Wide-eyed and a little confused, Abby Bancroft stared out the passenger side window of the Ford Escort parked in front of the large Victorian house. Her stomach churned as her gaze flipped between the obviously outdated brochure in her cold hand and the three-story wooden structure to her right in need of a new paint job and some other cosmetic work. If the outside reflected the inside, her vision of reopening the Bancroft Bed-and-Breakfast by the Founder's Day Festival the first weekend in May died a quick and painful death.

Disappointment pooled around her shoulders and matched the dismal early March skies. Puffy gray clouds threatened more snow in the sleepy town of Dynamite Creek in northern Arizona. The bare limbs of the tree standing guard by the long porch running along the front of the house looked more inviting than the empty windows that stared back at her. She should have guessed the house would be as welcoming as the people who once lived inside.

"Yep. This is it. We're here." Delia Wentworth, the receptionist from her late grandmother's attorney's office unbuckled her seat belt and opened the driver's side door. Frigid air blew through the interior, making Abby shiver inside her inadequate jacket and miss the warm Southern California weather. Here wasn't exactly the picture perfect place she'd expected to find as she sat frozen inside the car.

"It's really a great house. It just needs a little TLC," Delia responded enthusiastically before leaving the car.

"A little?" Abby's skepticism showed in her voice. She knew nothing about general construction, but she had eyes, unless something in her brain had gone haywire in the long drive between Los Angeles and Dynamite Creek. Maybe she needed a pair of rose-colored glasses like Delia wore because Abby didn't quite see the old Victorian in the same way.

Pulling her collar around her neck, Abby grabbed her purse, exited the car and walked to where the young woman stood. Abby held up the brochure and compared it with the house. Then she flipped the piece of paper over. The photo credit was from 1987. Figures. Over the years, beautiful and welcoming had morphed into dismal and uninviting. The yellow paint had faded over time and had begun to peel in several places and some of the porch railing sagged. And that was just what she could see.

A gust of wind frosted her legs and whipped a loose strand of hair into her eyes. Abby should have waited until May to collect her inheritance, but the letter from the attorney's office hadn't really given her much choice and she wasn't fool enough to walk away from a place she could finally call home. If she found a way to fit into Dynamite Creek.

Alexis: And don’t forget to leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of On Wings of Love.

To learn more about Kim Watters, go to www.kimwatters.com

Guest Author Interview: Crista McHugh

Alexis: Hi Crista. Welcome to Happily Ever After Thoughts.  Thank you so much for coming.  Your latest release is actually part of a series. Can you tell us a little bit about this uniquely named Kavanaugh Foundation series?

Crista: The Kavanaugh Foundation is a secret organization of witches, vampire hunters, demon hunters, and the like that stand between us and the things that go bump in the night. There are only two rules for the members: 1) Never let the outside world know the Foundation’s true purpose, and 2) Never let someone compromise your duty. As the series goes on, I plan on revealing more about the Foundation’s origins.  

Alexis:  Sounds mysterious J How does your latest release KISS OF TEMPTATION fit into this series?

Crista: This is the third book in the series. The series doesn’t have to be read in order, but each story reveals a new facet of the Foundation and Morwen, the Head Witch.

Alexis: I love reading books in order, especially when I can get all three right away ;-).Where did you get the idea for this story?

Crista:  I actually got the idea from a documentary on the Mt. Vesuvius eruption in 79 AD. Archeologists discovered charred marks on the bones of some of the victims in Herculaneum and hypothesized that they were basically vaporized. This, in turn, made me come up with an idea for a vampire who was terrified of being burned by the sunlight because he’d been caught in the eruption in a past life.

Alexis: Ah, great back story for a character. What kind of research did you have to do for this novel?

Crista: I ended up doing more research on Ancient Rome and Pompeii to get a feel for this character’s background. I also researched landmarks of Rome, Paris and Copenhagen. And, thanks to another plot bunny from an episode of Ghost Hunter’s International, I researched a castle in the Czech Republic that reportedly has a gateway to Hell. I do admit to taking liberties with the train schedule from Rome to Paris, though.

Alexis: I don’t think anyone will mind too much about the train schedules.  I doubt that will be our focus when reading your fascinating story J What inspired you to write paranormal and fantasy romance?

Crista: I don’t deal with “normal” very well. My mind likes to ask “What if?” too much, and I’m a HUGE geek. I used to play D&D, after all. But I’m dipping my toes in historicals as well, but my heart remains in a world of magic and mayhem.

Alexis: Dungeons and Dragons? Really? Dragons certainly haven’t disappeared. I think they are on the rise in romance and as for dungeons, plenty of those to be found in both paranormals and historicals so I’d say your inner geek is doing well J Do you have any other romance novels in progress that we can look forward to?

Crista: I’m working on sequels to both Kiss of Temptation and my Steampunk Western, The Alchemy of Desire. I have a historical coming out in February from Carina Press, and I have a SciFi assassin novel that’s out on submission at the moment.

Alexis: Wow, you have those writing fingers in all types of romance.  How awesome for your readers! What do you like most about being a romance author?

Crista: The happy endings, of course. I love bringing two different people together, having them overcome extreme obstacles and fall in love with each other in the process.

Alexis: And that’s why we read romance!  Thank you so much for visiting Happily Ever After Thoughts. We enjoy talking about romance novels here and learning about the exciting authors who write them J

Crista: Thank you so much for having me!

Alexis: Check out the excerpt below and be sure to comment for a chance to win the $10 electronic gift certificate and one of Crista's books! To learn more about Crista go to http://www.cristamchugh.com/wordpress/ 

Excerpt:

“Where are you taking me?” Would causing a scene with a spell be safer than going along with this stranger?

He stared straight ahead as he pushed deeper into the throngs of people that glutted the sidewalk. “Away from them.”

“And why should I think you’re better than them?”

That made him pause. He stopped and turned to face her.

Her gut wrenched. Mio Dio, a man shouldn’t be that gorgeous. Ebony black hair framed a face with a strong jaw and a slightly crooked nose—his only flaw as far as she could tell. But his eyes took her breath away. They were such a deep blue, they almost matched his hair.

He looked her over from head to toe and sucked in a deep breath. His mouth fell open, and for a few heartbeats, they just stared at each other. Then his jaw tightened. “I’m the least of your worries.”

As if on cue, a woman’s scream pierced the night. Daniela spun around. The crowd parted like the wake of a speedboat, but it moved way too fast for normal humans. Her throat closed up. The vampires.

The stranger yanked her out of her daze and pushed her against the window of a crowded café. Gorgeous or not, she was getting tired of the Neanderthal treatment. She was about to give him a piece of her mind when his lips crushed against hers, cutting off her words and nearly making her swoon. At first she resisted, but he continued to kiss her, slowly wearing down her defenses. By the time his tongue brushed against the seam of her mouth, she eagerly opened it to him.

She couldn’t remember the last time a man had kissed her this way. So strong. So domineering. So possessive it made her toes curl. A flush spread from her face all the way to the pit of her stomach, and her sex ached. Although she barely knew him, she already wanted to forgo this sexual foreplay and head straight to the bedroom. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she began kissing back with a ferocity that surprised her.

Perhaps it surprised him too. A muffled gasp worked its way out of his throat. He pressed his body against hers. For a would-be rescuer, he acted like he wanted to screw her right here in the middle of the street. One hand grabbed her buttocks, lifting her so he could grind against her. The other worked its way between them and cupped one of her breasts.

Her head reeled with each delightful twist of his tongue, and she slipped further and further into her lust-filled trance. He could be working with the vampires for all she knew, but at this point, she almost didn’t care.

She froze and opened her eyes. Her mission. She needed to find the Staff of Octavius before Colette, not waste time playing tonsil hockey with a stranger. And as much as she wanted to continue, her duty to the Foundation came first.

He must have sensed her unfortunate jolt of reality, because he ended the kiss by gently sucking on her bottom lip. “I think they’re gone now.”

 Alexis: Don't forget to comment for a chance to win :-)

Review: Temptation of the Warrior by Margo Maguire

If it’s hard for you to decide whether your next read will be a historical or paranormal, try Maguire’s Temptation of the Warrior because it’s both. She blends an ancient culture from a thousand years ago with nineteenth century England-actually two historical venues- and brings to life a warrior, Merrick, and a woman running from an abusive life, Jenny.

Here comes the tricky and magical part.  Merrick’s ancient clan transports him ahead in time in order to retrieve magical gems to save his clan.  In this “future time” one of the gems is owned by Jenny.  And she doesn’t know it.

By fate, Merrick arrives in England just in time to save Jenny from a band of ruffian horsemen.  During the fight, Merrick looses his memory and has to go by instinct to carry out his purpose in this strange land.  A bond immediately grows between the beautiful and innocent Jenny and the chivalrous and gorgeous Merrick along with conflicts on both sides.

Merrick’s problem is that he must find the gem and then return home to marry the woman his family chose.  Even if he wants to break tradition and ask for Jenny’s hand, there’s a problem transporting a human back one thousand years.

If that’s not enough, Jenny has issues with trusting men and thinks Merrick may have a wife that he’s forgotten. 

And the enemy has followed Merrick into the future while Jenny’s enemy is right behind them.

Merrick and Jenny have a bag full of conflicts to overcome with a scattering of magic to help.  It’s an exciting ride right up to the end and a story that’s hard to put to sleep.  Or is it that it’s hard to get yourself to sleep without knowing what happens next? 

Dawn

Guest Author: Paty Jager

 Alexis: Hi Paty. Welcome to Happily Ever After Thoughts.  Thank you so much for coming.  I think you are our first historical western paranormal writer.  How exciting! What made you decide to incorporate the paranormal into the historical western romance genre?

Paty: Hi Alexis! Thanks of having me here!  The first romance books I wrote were historical westerns. When several agents and editors at an RWA (Romance Writers of America) conference said they were looking for historical paranormal I couldn't wrap my mind around anything other than Native American spirits and to me they didn't even feel paranormal, they felt normal!

Alexis:  Now that you explain it, I can see how that rich culture would lend itself so well to a paranormal bent. Your new romance being released this month, Spirit of the Lake, also fits into this category. Can you tell us a little about this book?

Paty: Spirit of the Lake is the second book of my spirit trilogy. The Trilogy follows the Nez Perce Indians from before the Whiteman arrived in their beloved Wallowa country (Spirit of the Mountain) to when the Whiteman arrives ( Spirit of the Lake), to the Nez Perce's run for freedom (Spirit of the Sky). The spirits in the books are siblings. Two brothers and a sister who were saved by the Creator when their father, many, many years before listened to coyote and put greed and selfishness before his own people. The Creator made them spirits. The oldest brother, Himiin, is a white wolf spirit, Wewukiye, the hero in Spirit of the Lake, is a bull elk who lives in the lake as the Nez Perce legend of the antler creature who resides in the lake and when Nez Perce children are bad he comes during the night and takes them to the depths of the lake. And Sa-qan, the sister, is a bald eagle.

In Spirit of the Lake Wewukiye saves a pregnant Nez Perce maiden from killing herself. She has been told to keep the truth about the baby(she was raped by a Whiteman the leaders believe to be their friend) quiet to not cause trouble. The story takes place several years after the U.S. Government once again reneged on a treaty with the Nez Perce. The treaty of 1862 was only signed by half of the Nez Perce and that treaty took away the land the Wallowa band lived on. They remained friendly with the Whiteman in fear of being taken from their home.  Wewukiye decides that the baby is the way to prove the Whiteman's deceit and he sets about helping Dove, the heroine, remain healthy during her pregnancy and he falls for her.

Alexis: That sounds very interesting. Where did you get the idea for this story?

Paty:  I grew up in Wallowa County and have always been fascinated by the Nez Perce. They were a passive band, living off the land, raising prized horses, and until they were pushed from their land had never killed a Whiteman.  So when I decided to show their love for the Wallowa country (book one) How the Whiteman upset their lives(book two) and their flight to freedom (book three) I came up with the spirit element/characters to help me show all of this.

Alexis: It sounds like you know your subject. What kind of research did you have to do for this novel?

Paty: I have a shelf full of books on the Nez Perce. Fiction and non fiction as well as biographical. Half a dozen sites on the internet bookmarked, and I found two Nez Perce on a Nez Perce yahoo loop who were willing to help me out. One was a descendent of Chief Joseph and the other was a woman who had older relatives who could answer the questions I had that she didn't know. Each of these books I spent just about as much time researching as I did writing.

Alexis: I believe it! Do you have any other romance novels in progress that we can look forward to?

Paty: I just finished the third book of this trilogy. I have self published a couple historical westerns of my back list to Kindle and Smashwords.

Alexis: I noticed you write contemporary westerns as well.  What other stories can our readers find written by you?

Paty: I have an action adventure I’m looking for a home for. But if I don’t come up with one soon, I'll self publish. So watch my website and blog to find out what happens there. http://www.patyjager.net/

Alexis: I understand that Happily Ever After Thoughts is just one of the stops on your two week blog tour and that you have a special contest running. Could you explain to our readers how it works? 

Paty:  Leave a comment on as many of my guest blogs at you can and the person who travels with me the most will receive an autographed copy of Spirit of the Lake, a sweatshirt, and cowboy chocolate. To find all the places I’m visiting go to my blog: www.patyjager.blogspot.com  The contest runs from May 18^th – May 29^th covering thirteen blogs. I'll notify the winner on May 30^th. In the event of a tie I will draw a name.

Alexis: Thank you so much for visiting Happily Ever After Thoughts. We like talking about romance novels here and learning about the wonderful authors who write them J

Paty: Thank you for having me here! I enjoyed the interview questions. Please let everyone know that I have a monthly contest on my website http://www.patyjager.net  It's not running this month because of the blog tour but will be up again next month. And at my website you can read the first chapters of all my books and find a couple of free reads I have at The Wild Rose Press.

Escaping into a Romance Book

Work is stressful. Heck, life is stressful BUT I consider myself lucky. After a busy day at my day job, I get to come home to my castle, my sanctuary from the world outside…..and bury my nose in a book, preferably a historical. In a historical romance, there are no computers that eat your work and send it off into the cyberspace after you’ve struggled over it for hours. Phones aren’t ringing, demanding your attention. There are no cars to cut you off on the highway, honking at you as you make your way to the job (although some of those carriage/coach drivers were speed demons) and although I’m sure there were traffic jams in cities like London in the 1800’s, they weren’t like ours.  

The pace was slower (for some). The rush of “do it now” seems to be missing - at least in the historicals I read. That’s not to say it wasn’t hard and filled with stresses of another kind.

Think about it. Depending on your station in life, things were certainly different.

Can you imagine what doing the laundry was like? Or what one had to go through just to take a bath? Who among us hasn’t dashed down to the Circle K for a gallon of milk? Can you imagine having to go out to the barn and milking that cow yourself just to have a glass with your cookies? Sewing your own clothes? Not being able to pick up the phone to call a friend or relative? Living in Phoenix without air conditioning?

Still it’s nice to drop into the past and forget all those modern conveniences for a while, don’t you think?

Happy reading!

Marie

Guest Author: Rie McGaha - When the Voices Call

For giveaway, see below

Authors are often asked where they come up with ideas for their stories, and I've noticed the majority of us have the same basic answer – we write whatever the voices in our heads tell us to. Those who aren't authors might think that sounds a tad coo-koo but it is the truth, at least for me.

While there are outside influences such as a place, a song, or even something someone might say to me can inspire an idea, it is still the voices in my head that tell me what to write and where the plot is going. People think I'm joking when I say I am often surprised at what happens in my stories and I have been heard to say, "Wow, I didn't know that would happen," while writing a story.

I've named the dominating voice Melba, not because she's milquetoast but because the name does not depict a young beautiful woman, but a crotchety old hag who is in everybody's business. That is how Melba sounds in my head when I'm writing. She nags at every stroke of the keys, gives me a bad time when I refuse to do things her way, and she purposefully keeps key elements of the plot a secret until the very last moment. I'm not very fond of her, to say the least but she does come up with some great tales for me to tell, so I keep her around.

Melba has recently been on sabbatical. You might think that a good thing, and while I haven't missed the wrinkled little witch one bit, I have been at a loss for new storylines without her. So when she returned today, completely unannounced, of course, I was not exactly thrilled to see her. However, in a never before seen act of contrition from her, she did have the a great idea to finish a book that has been all but forgotten for the past year.

So the next time you pick up a book, or open your e-reader, take into consideration what an author goes through while creating the masterpiece in your hands. And while I am sitting here with Melba chattering in my ear, at least she quit drinking.

Excerpt from CALEN:

She stood on the other side of the fire and watched him sleep. He was more beautiful in person than he was in her dreams. His face was soft in repose, and she walked slowly to him, careful not to make any sound that might wake him. Kneeling beside him, her fingers itched to touch the smooth skin of his face. How she wanted to trace her fingers over those full, kissable lips, to his high cheekbones, along his jaw, and over his brow. Her lips tingled at the thought of pressing them against his.

He slept without a shirt, and the sight of his bare chest caused her breath to catch in her throat. His skin was tanned from the summer sun, and she wanted to touch the golden hair on his chest. To trace a line down his body to where more hair covered his stomach and then disappeared in a trail below the band of his leather breeches. Wondering what else lay below that line, she wanted to know if the bottom half of him was as beautiful as the top.

She hugged her knees tightly to her chest to give her hands something to do, or else she knew she would touch him. And that was not allowed. She'd broken the rules just by being with him now, but she was not actually making contact with the mortal. Not a word had been spoken between then, she had not reached for him, nor had she wakened him. Oh, she wanted to wake him—to wake him and do much more—but time had run out, and she needed to get back or she would be missed. She sat for a moment longer and when he stirred, she caught her breath. He settled back into sleep, and, impulsively, she softly kissed his brow. Then she was gone.

To buy CALEN, by Rie McGaha, click on this link: http://silverpublishing.info/index/book_authors_id/64/typefilter/book_authors

For more information on Rie, go to http://www.riemcgaha.com/ 

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