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Book Blurb

Elizabeth Aloe

November 5, 2013 Leave a Comment

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About author, Elizabeth Aloe: California born and bred, I grew up in the bay area and attended Cal Poly in my favorite place on earth, San Luis Obispo.  After graduating with a journalism degree and moving everywhere from Connecticut to San Francisco to Minneapolis, I’m happy to say I’m back in SLO doing what I love best–writing novels, making jewelry and going to the beach.  I still have a day job I love, but I don’t let it get in the way.

INTERVIEW

Describe your writing style in five words: relatable, realistic, contemporary, romantic, musical

Tell us about your books: The Reunion is a contemporary romance novel about Charlotte and Trevor…two people who met in college, dated, broke up and run into each other in San Francisco 15 years later.

Hard/paperbacks or eBooks? Paperback and digital

When did you know you were a writer? I’ve always loved writing-letters, emails, blogs, comments on websites. It was a dream to write a novel and I’ve always had so many stories in my head I realized I could write when I read Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. It was that book I realized I could write a story where the characters are relatable, flawed, yet realistic.

What is the writing/editing/publishing process like for you? The writing process is the easiest. It’s the editing and publishing that is tough.

Where do you get your ideas from? Real life.

What is your favorite word? Fabulous

I read that you make jewelry, do you incorporate this into your books? Sometimes. I did a little bit with the Reunion when the character was single again and spending time on her own.

How did you celebrate your first book being published? I took a jpeg of my book cover to kinkos, had it blown up and got it framed. It now hangs in my apartment as a reminder of my milestone.

If you could meet one other author, who would it be and why? Emily Giffin. She was the inspiration for me to finally get my words on paper.

What do you want readers to take away from your books? If they are single women living on their own and looking for love, I want them to know their life is full without a man. They need to be happy and confident with their own lives before inviting someone else into it. And if that someone doesn’t feel completely right, he probably isn’t.

Can you tell us about any of your upcoming projects? I’m working on the follow up called Celebrity Scandal. It’s a spin off of The Reunion and follows two characters introduced in The Reunion.

Print

Blurb of “The Reunion” by Elizabeth Aloe:

Its been over a decade since thirty-two year old Charlotte Campbell met Trevor Sheldon as a college freshman in San Luis Obispo. After bonding over alternative music, journalism courses, and kisses as DJs for the campus radio station, Charlotte fell deeply in love. Things were perfect until that traumatic night at the station that smashed their budding relationship to pieces. Charlotte never expected she would speak to Trevor again, let alone fifteen years later at a job interview in San Francisco. What’s a girl to do when old feelings escape the vault in her heart and rush up to threaten everything she thought she wanted? Suddenly, Charlotte is forced to re-examine her choices and figure out exactly where she wants her life to take her.

Trevor Sheldon fell in love with Charlotte the moment he first laid eyes on her in the studio. As her mentor at KCPR, he was the one who taught her to be a DJ and how to navigate the first quarter of college. It was no surprise when she taught him how to love someone for the very first time. After she broke up with him and cut him out of her life, Trevor was devastated. Now, she’s back and his life is turned upside down. He still loves her but she’s off limits. How can Trevor possibly get over Charlotte when he never quite got over her before

As the KCPR reunion approaches, both Charlotte and Trevor must come to terms with their past and figure out where to take their future. Are they still in love with each other or is it just an open door they both need to close forever?

The Reunion is a novel for those who’ve always wondered what it would be like to reconnect with the one that got away. Sometimes the past comes back when you least expect it.

**Contact Elizabeth:

Email: elizabethaloe@yahoo.com   Facebook   Twitter

**Additional comments from Elizabeth: I wrote this book for those women who are dating in their 30s and living on their own and happy with their lives. It is important for my characters to feel real and relatable.

Filed Under: Isabella Tagged With: Book Blurb, Books, Chick-Lit, Elizabeth Aloe, Interivew, The Reunion

Katy Regnery

October 9, 2013 Leave a Comment

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About author, Kate Regnery: Katy is a 2013 NECRWA First Kiss, 2013 NTRWA Great Expectations and 2013 SOLA Dixie Kane contest winner who has always loved telling a good story. She credits her mother with making funny, heartwarming tales come alive throughout her childhood. A lifelong devotee of all Romance writing, from Edwardian to present-day, it was just a matter of time before Katy tried her hand at writing a love story of her own.

Katy lives in the relative-wilds of northern Fairfield County, Connecticut where her writing room looks out at the woods, and her husband, two young children and two dogs create just enough cheerful chaos to remind her that the very best love stories of all can often be the messy or unexpected ones.

INTERVIEW

Describe your writing style in five sentences: I write sweet, small-town contemporary romances that generally use a hero/heroine alternating point of view. I try to keep my dialogue sharp and witty, but I also do a fair amount of thoughtful exposition. Satisfying micro and macro arcs are really important to me; I don’t like leaving loose ends!

When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I took my first writing class with the local continuing education program in January 2012. That Spring I wrote a lot of short stories, but I didn’t really think about novel writing until September when I started writing By Proxy. I completed By Proxy in November 2012 and it was contracted in March 2013.

Hard/paperbacks or eBooks? I have a small collection of paperbacks that were meaningful to me when I read them. I can’t part with them yet, even though some of them are on my Kindle too. But, I’m 100% digital at this point. I can’t remember the last time I bought a paper book.

How did you celebrate the publication of your first book? When By Proxy debuted, my husband was on a business trip and my kids were asleep, so I was all alone! I opened a bottle of Champagne and poured myself a glass. Then I sat on my computer for hours, toggling between Twitter, Facebook and Amazon, just watching it all happen. Pretty intense. Pretty awesome.

What is the writing/editing/publishing process like for you? My writing process is generally very intense. I want to write all the time and it’s really hard for me to balance my “real” life with writing time. I’m pretty compulsive when I’m on a jag, and I’ve been known to write 8,000-10,000 words a day.

I view the editing process as a fail-safe and I am immensely grateful for it. I look forward to the feedback my editor gives me and I take revisions really, really seriously. It’s my chance to make a 3-4 star book into a 4-5 star book.

I’ve only published one book so far, but it was pretty emotional! I was so nervous and excited before my book launched, then euphoric once it did, then terrified it would flop. I am just getting to a place now where I am starting to relax about it.

If you’re not writing, then you’re probably…: Driving my kids to their activities, hanging out on social media, or picking up a Café Americana decaf with four shots. (I specifically take a break every day to drive to my favorite coffee shop!)

Who or what inspires you? Any love story inspires me. On TV, in movies, in books. I was recently at a wedding and a young couple shared the story of how they met at summer camp as kids and found each other again in Manhattan twenty years later. I was utterly captivated, and thought to myself, “Hmm. Summer camp. Good setting…”

Where is your favorite place to write? I have a small office in my home. To my right is window that looks out on our backyard, and to my left is a window that looks out into the woods. As far as I’m concerned, it’s perfect.

You write under two names, are there any differences between your characters? Yes, lots. My Katy Regnery romances are sweet and the characters are – for the most part – grounded and “normal.” My K.P. Kelley paranormals are visceral, sometimes violent and the emotionality is much more absolute and intense.

What do you want your readers to take away from your books? That there’s someone for everyone. I really believe that. You have to keep your heart and eyes open, but if you desire love – if you really, really want love in your life – I believe you’ll find it.

Every writer must have a…: Good sound system in their office or writing space. I couldn’t do without mine! I’d say I play music at least 60% of the time while I’m writing. I have playlists that specifically correlate to each book, and no matter how much time goes by between typing “The End” and doing revisions, the music will take me right back into my characters’ heads.

Can you tell us about any of your upcoming projects? A novella “The Christmas Wish,” my second Heart of Montana book, will be out the first week in November. The ensuing four Heart of Montana books will be out in January, April, July and October 2014, and January 2015. It’s an aggressive release schedule, but almost all are already written.

My first paranormal, It’s You, comes out in Spring 2014.

ByProxyCoverPic

Blurb of “By Proxy”:

“Is my virtue safe?” Sam asked.

“Safer than it was in Chicago,” Jenny answered, getting the better of him.

He chuckled. “Phew! Okay. That’s a relief. Yes, I will come watch a Christmas movie with you. But you better keep your hands to yourself, Jenny. I mean it.”

She shook her head, smiling as they made their way across the bridge. “You are an ass.”

He gasped. “Jenny Lindstrom! A swearword!”

She giggled merrily. “An animal.”

“The back end of one.”

“As you said.”

“Do you kiss your father with that mouth?”

“I kissed you with that mouth.”

He stopped walking beside her, but their hands connected them and she had to drop his hand or stop and turn back to him. She stopped and turned. He was standing beside the last lamppost on the bridge, leaning against it with his arm outstretched to her. As she approached him in the dim light, she could see his eyes sparkling.

“No, Jen. I kissed you.” He pulled her closer. “But I’m open to a do-over.”

**Contact Kate Regnery:

Website   Facebook   Twitter

Filed Under: Katy Regnery Tagged With: Authors, Book Blurb, Books, By Proxy, Guest Interview, Kate Regnery, Romance

Shelly Hickman

October 1, 2013 1 Comment

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About author, Shelly Hickman: I have lived in Las Vegas nearly all my life. I’ve been married for 23 years, and I have three children. My oldest would have been 22 this December, however, I lost my Sydney Bean to leukemia when she was eight years old. I have a son who is 17, and my youngest daughter is 12. I teach computer literacy and media technology to middle school students, and though I have a great love for technology, I believe I love writing more.

INTERVIEW

Welcome back, Shelly! What have you been up to since your first appearance? Thanks for the welcome, Isabella. Basically, I spent most of the summer on my laptop, flattening one of my sofa cushions (as well as my butt) while trying to get as much writing done as possible. I also took a little trip to Utah for a few days with the family, and had a few get-togethers by the pool. Now it’s back to the real world and a new school year. I’m definitely missing my freedom and lazy mornings.

Tell us about your new book, “Vegas to Varanasi”: Since it seems we constantly see movies and TV shows which have average looking men matched up with gorgeous women, I wanted to write a story about just the opposite—an everyday looking woman who attracts the attention of a really hot guy. Anna and Kiran briefly went to high school together, and in those days, Kiran was the overweight, geeky kid. Anna was about the only person who was nice to him, and he never forgot her for that. When they meet up again as adults in their forties, Kiran is jaw-droppingly hot and has quite a crush on Anna. However, Anna is pretty apprehensive, at first, because she doesn’t think she’s cut out for dating someone as perfect-looking as Kiran. As they become more than friends, Anna’s mixed up ex-boyfriend isn’t too thrilled about her moving on, and does everything he can to be a pain in the ass. The book is a romantic comedy that I hope readers will find entertaining.

What was the writing process like for you this time around? My last book had a more complicated plotline, with scenes from past lives that were kind of difficult for me to weave into the present. The plotline of Vegas to Varanasi is much more straight-forward, which made the writing process a little more streamlined for me.

Describe your perfect day: Oh, I have many kinds of perfect days. On the most basic level, that would be a day at work when my students seem to enjoy what they’re learning, they’re treating each other with kindness, and they’re not going out of their way to push Mrs. Hickman’s buttons. I have to say, it’s been a pretty good year so far. 🙂

Where did you get the idea for “Vegas to Varanasi?” As I mentioned, in entertainment I’ve often noticed the pairing of average Joes with very attractive women. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. There’s more to people than their looks, obviously. But the fact that we rarely see the opposite scenario has always kind of annoyed me, and I thought it would be fun to explore that scenario from the plain Jane’s point of view.

What motivates you? I just try to be a kind person. One of my favorite quotes is in my email signature at work: What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?—Jean Jacques Rousseau

Where is your favorite place to write? Honestly, I don’t really have a favorite place to write. I just try to do it when and where it’s convenient.

How was the social media helped your career? It has helped me most by giving me an avenue to connect with and befriend other writers. I have learned so much from fellow indie authors and I really treasure those friendships.

What must every writer have? I think a desire to create and a willingness to put themselves out there. Of course, skill is necessary as well, but that’s an ongoing process anyway.

Do you have any advice for struggling writers? From one struggling writer to a world of struggling writers, I think ultimately, write if it brings you joy. If you sell a few books in the process, that’s just a bonus.

Where do you see yourself in five years? If I’m not still teaching, I see myself doing something in education outside the classroom. If I could also have a nice little following for my writing by then, that would be lovely!

Can you tell us about any of your upcoming projects? I haven’t given the next project any thought yet. Still busy trying to get this one off the ground. 😉

Blurb of “Vegas to Varanasi”:

VegastoVaranasiCoverPicAnna has never been the beautiful one; she’s always been the nice one. So when the gorgeous man sitting across the table at a wedding reception remembers her from high school—and quite fondly at that—she’s taken off guard. Formerly overweight and unpopular, Kiran has never forgotten Anna, the one person who was kind to him when no one else could be bothered, and Anna’s a bit flustered as she slowly comes to grips with his intense attraction for her. In what feels like a romantic dream come true, all-grown-up, hunky Kiran invites Anna on a trip to Varanasi. But her troubled, whack-a-do ex-boyfriend starts interfering, creating drama at every turn, which begs the question, “Can nice girls really finish first?”

**Shelly Hickman would also like to offer an advanced reader copy of Vegas to Varanasi to anyone who would be willing to share a review on Amazon during the first week of December when the book is released. If you are interested, please contact her at sydneyhickman91@gmail.com, or you can message her privately on my Facebook author page.

**Contact Shelly:

Email: sydneyhickman91@gmail.com   Website   Facebook   Twitter

Filed Under: Shelly Hickman, Vegas to Varanasi Tagged With: Book Blurb, Books, Chick-Lit, Guest Interview, Shelly Hickman, Vegas to Varanasi

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