About author, Caroline Fardig: CAROLINE FARDIG was born and raised in a small town in Indiana. Her working career has been rather eclectic thus far, with occupations including schoolteacher, church organist, insurance agent, funeral parlor associate, and stay-at-home mom. Finally realizing that she wants to be a writer when she grows up, Caroline has released her debut novel, IT’S JUST A LITTLE CRUSH, now a #1 Bestseller. She is currently hard at work churning out a second novel in the LIZZIE HART MYSTERIES series. She still lives in that same small town with an understanding husband, two sweet kids, two energetic dogs, and one malevolent cat.
INTERVIEW
Describe your writing style in five words: Smart, sexy, funny, sarcastic, fun.
When did you know you were a writer? It was after people I didn’t know started buying my book!
Salty or sweet? Sweet.
Where did you get the idea for “It’s Just a Little Crush”? A few of the young teens at my church were always “crushing” on book characters—Twilight, Mortal Instruments, etc.—so I thought the idea of a “crush” would make a good love story. And because I wanted to keep things interesting, I threw in a little murder, too.
Hard/paperback or eBooks? eBooks. I love my Nook, and it’s so much easier to carry around than an actual book. However, holding MY book in my hands for the first time was a real rush.
What was the writing/editing/publishing process like for you? The writing part was great, because I love to watch my ideas grow and change and ultimately make a story. Editing is tedious at best, but I have a great team of proofreaders who make my life a lot easier. Publishing was difficult, because of course I neglected to read the formatting instructions before I started writing the book. Going back and manually taking out tabs was a nightmare. Other than formatting issues, the publishing process was great. I love that epublishing gives you so much control over your work.
Every writer must have a…: Great deal of quiet time. If I don’t have quiet time, nothing gets done.
Who is your favorite author? Kristan Higgins. I love her tone.
How has the social media helped your career? I really would be nowhere without it. Twitter, Facebook, and blogging have really done wonders to get my name out there.
What do you want your readers to take away from your books? I want them to laugh and have fun. Some people like for books to change them or make them more thoughtful people. Not me. Books are an escape, and I want to go on an adventure, fall in love, and laugh while I’m doing it. I want to give that feeling to my readers.
What’s the best advice you’ve been given? Develop a thick skin, and never give up. When you and your work are out in the public eye, you set yourself up for criticism. Whether it be from random people on the Internet, reviewers, agents, publishers, or whomever, don’t take it personally. If you truly believe in your work, then put it out there and be proud of it. Don’t ever give up on your dreams of making it in publishing—so many famous authors were once where you are right now.
Can you tell us about any of your upcoming projects? I have books 2 and 3 of the Lizzie Hart Mysteries series written, and right now I’m working on a chick-lit romance that’s not part of the series.
**Additional comments by the Caroline: It’s Just a Little Crush was a Semifinalist in The Kindle Book Review’s 2013 Best Indie Book Awards. It’s Just a Little Crush by Caroline Fardig is a #1 Bestseller on Barnes & Noble’s Humor and Women Detectives lists!
Blurb of “It’s Just a Little Crush” by Caroline Fardig:
The sleepy town of Liberty hasn’t seen murder in…well…ever. Residents are stunned when the body of a young woman is found strangled, and reporters at the Liberty Chronicle are thrilled, rather disturbingly, over the biggest news story to hit town this century.
Lizzie Hart has even bigger problems. Lately, she can’t seem to concentrate on her job as copy editor at the Chronicle with the new hunky investigative reporter, Blake Morgan, swaggering around the office. How can a girl work when she’s using all of her energy combating Blake-induced hot flashes and struggling to repress the giggly inner schoolgirl that’s constantly rearing her dorky head? It’s a good thing that Blake barely knows Lizzie exists.
After an odd string of events, however, Lizzie begins to wonder if Blake is really as fabulous as she has fantasized. When Lizzie and Blake find a co-worker dead, Blake’s personality changes completely—and not in a good way. Even though the police rule the death as an accident, Lizzie immediately suspects foul play and senses a connection to the recent murder. She is determined to bring the killer to justice, but is having some trouble getting her Nancy Drew on thanks to the pesky stalker she’s picked up—Blake Morgan. Wait, didn’t she want him to follow her around and pay attention to her? Not like this. Blake has turned from cool and smooth to cold and downright scary, making Lizzie wonder if he should be next on her suspect list.
Chapter 1 tease
It’s time. 9:07 AM. Against my better judgment, I allow myself to steal a quick glance at the door. The sight of a shadow hovering outside throws my stomach into a spasm, clenching, twisting, and tossing my breakfast mercilessly, the wave of nausea leaving me a little light-headed. My heart is banging against my ribcage so hard it may just crack a rib. I should breathe. In, out, in, out. Great, that didn’t help. Now I think I may be hyperventilating. Maybe I should hold my breath. Ooh, now I’m dizzy. I nervously wipe a shaking hand across my forehead, and it comes back soaked with sweat. Gross. As the doorknob turns, a shot of pure adrenaline courses through my veins, causing random body parts to twitch and quiver completely beyond my control. In short, I am a hot mess.
You’d think some earth-shattering event is going on or something. Well, it’s not. I’m not in the middle of diffusing a bomb or running from the mob, or anything cool like that. No, I’m just sitting here at my desk waiting for HIM to walk through the door. Know what’s really lame? I’m not even sure that he knows I exist. I can count on one hand the number of conversations I’ve had with him, most of them monosyllabic on my part, because I can’t seem to form a complete sentence in his presence. You have to understand, I’m really not a loser. Really, I’m not.
The door swings open, and I inadvertently let a little giggle escape. What am I, back in junior high? This is getting embarrassing. Am I, Lizzie Hart, a grown woman of twenty-six years, seriously going to let a man I barely know get me this excited? Yes, yes I am. Before I can compose myself, a figure steps through the doorway, and there HE is…Blake Morgan. Right on time—well, so to speak. Why he is exactly seven minutes late every day, I don’t know. Maybe he just wants to make an entrance—and does he ever! Wait. Oh, it’s happening again. Why has the room suddenly screeched into slow motion as he struts his sexy self past me? Where is the fan that is breezily blowing his shiny brown hair, only to have it fall perfectly into place by the time he reaches his desk? And where is that pulsating music coming from? I glance around. Everyone else seems to be doing their normal work thing, oblivious to the shift in the space-time continuum that’s going on here. Am I to believe that I’m the only person in this office affected this way? As I hang my head in shame I realize that yes, yes I am.
It always takes a few minutes for my eyes to adjust back into focus after my daily Blake-vision episode. A little too late, I notice some movement out of the corner of my eye and realize in horror that Blake himself is walking straight toward my desk. Get a grip, Lizzie! Oh, crap. Here comes the blushing. Every time I am the least bit embarrassed or caught off guard I turn ten kinds of red, and I’m powerless to stop it. Breathe, girl! It’s your only hope! Don’t panic—he’s probably only going to ask you a simple work question. Everyone knows he’s seeing someone, although no one seems to know who, so surely he can’t be thinking about me romantically or sizing me up in any way. Chill out! I scramble to appear busy and important as he walks…past my desk and starts talking to another co-worker about some game from last night. Oh. I really hoped he was going to stop by because he needed me.
**”IT’S JUST A LITTLE CRUSH will be on sale for $0.99 through October 24th!
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