Zara West's Blog, page 11

Meet Marilyn Barr and her Strawberry Shifters

Today I am interviewing romance author Marilyn Barr who specializes in romance stories about characters who have different abilities and body types. But I will let her tell you all about it.

Do your travels influence your writing?

My family loves to travel and our annual trips have become the other pack locations in the Strawberry shifter’s series.  Rosie Paulino’s sons are coming of age and need to find potential mates outside of isolated Strawberry.  This is a common problem, so packs have joined together to trade youngsters in summer internships.  Frank Paulino Junior is the first of Rosie’s sons to leave and we watch his journey to Seagrass Island FL, in Smoother Than Spumoni.  Seagrass Island is modeled after Anna Maria island where my family travels at the end of each summer.  In researching the upcoming novella, I went on multiple dolphin sighting tours to film prototypes for Suzie Larkin, MBA student, and Encantado Shifter.  Many intriguing characters in Seagrass shift into a manner of animals with a wide range of unusual side effects so I would love to write a novella or novel for each of them too.  While Suzie’s best friend Jean has made up her mind to intern at Bergan Pharma in Strawberry, more spin-off novels will be written so fans can check-in with the pack who can surf the best.

Had Frank never met Suzie, he would have traveled to the mountainous North Carolina pack.  The home of this pack is modeled after Gatlinburg TN where my family hides away every November.  Will Rosie send another son away if Frank decides to stay with Suzie?  Or will she manipulate the young couple into living in Strawberry, so another son has a chance at finding love without leaving her too lonely?  Stay tuned.

What other genres of novel would you love to write?

I love paranormal romance, but I have been batting around the idea of sending witches into space.  Having a master’s degree in particle physics and natural curiosity of all things extraterrestrial, I miss researching the quantum mechanics that hold space-time together.  (Read as Uber-nerd phone home.)  My idea is that a tyrannical cult leader becomes President of the United States.  He bans all religions outside of his cult and most of them go underground. 

However, a group of witches refuses to give up their coven or conform to the ideals of the cult.  It is no longer politically correct to burn them at the stake so what is a tyrant to do?  He sends them into space.  The witches are banished to Mars to build a colony in the name of the United States and claim territory before the other countries.  The witches have minimal support from Earth but instead use their intuition, natural living skills, and mystical powers to survive.

How did you come up with the title?

                The titles of the Strawberry Shifters books are puns based on what the main characters need the most to find happiness.  In the case of Bear with Me, Alison needs her husband to stick around long enough to hear what she needs from him.  Alison has lost her inner power, leaving Grant in the dark on what it would take to save their marriage.  Just because they have been together for over twelve years doesn’t mean he can read her mind.  Grant also needs Alison to “Bear with Me”.  He has worked tirelessly to provide a lavish lifestyle for the family and has landed his dream job.  Financially, the couple is set for life.  He hasn’t divided his time evenly between work and home but will make the changes necessary to reclaim the love of Alison.  Will Alison wait for him to find a healthy work/life balance?

             The second book in the series is Round of Applause.  What could the characters need to find happiness with that title?  Find out during the holiday season of 2020.

Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with?

The Strawberry shifters is a sixteen-book series that details the lives of those who live in Strawberry, Kentucky and in some way support Bergan Pharma.  I am very excited to write an installment with the working title, Cotton Batting.  In the book, I want to take on the issue of fat-shaming.  In 2018, I lost over sixty pounds using a healthy diet, exercise routine, and natural healing of inflammation from my autoimmune disease.  While my friends supported my journey, I got the most bizarre comments from acquaintances.  I knew they were trying to be complimentary but things like “bet you are glad to buy clothes from the real stores now” and “bet your husband is much happier now” didn’t sit well with me.  My self-doubt spiraled out of control wondering what they weren’t saying when I was heavier.  I have never had weight-related health problems but rather the opposite.  Most conventional remedies for ulcerative colitis cause weight gain.  It is an issue of beauty, not health.

I’m not a shrinking violet so I want to take this issue head-on.  I can’t wait to introduce the world to Tyler, the hippo shifter.  Tyler was a teenage runaway who Rafaella the witch took in during the 1990s.  When he was attacked by a Sluagh pack leader, Vinnie saved the kid by converting him to a shifter.  Tyler had hoped to grow into a fierce werewolf, lion, or leopard.  With his waistline growing exponentially, he had the sinking suspicion he was meant to be something “greater”.  Being a hippo isn’t the same as being docile, Tyler is a fierce warrior with a healthy, yet larger, body.  (Note: Hippos kill more people yearly than all the big cats in Africa combined).

Tyler, the man, is happy with his size and secure in himself.  He not only runs Strawberry’s only grocery store by himself, but he also coordinates the weekly game night for the guys in town.  He loves strategy games, technology, and solving puzzles.  His easy smile, quick wit, and talent for solving problems make him popular with vampires and shifters alike.  Tyler’s life is low stress and easy until microbiologist Kimberly Parker moves to town.  If only the judgy woman weren’t his destined soulmate, then he could tell her to shove her BMI rhetoric you-know-where. 

Kimberly is a star at her New Jersey pharma company until her personal life runs her out of town.  Hiding in Strawberry seemed like a safe idea until she is introduced to the paranormal aspects of the town.  She can’t run for she knows too much, and hiding isn’t working.  She has an unlikely hero in the grocery store owner who has always been too nice.  If she can get him to change his outside, maybe they could date.  However, she can’t trust him to protect her from the phantoms of her present or the monsters of her past at his size, or can she?

Do you have writing tip for other authors?

            If you are like me, you will worry about every step of your journey.  It starts with worrying about whether you have it in you to finish your first novel.  Next comes the anxiety of letting others read it, the brutal query process, and the anticipation of meeting your dream editor or agent.  Once you get the coveted contract, you will worry about ARC reviewers and editing choices.  When it is time to release your book, you will worry about promotions, sales, and rankings.  However, you do not have to be miserable.

            Just write.  Every day at the same time of day (if possible) write something.  Whether it is 10 words or 10 chapters, every written word counts toward your dream.  When you feel the doubts creep up, and you want to pace your floor while wringing your hands, sit and write.  It doesn’t matter if you delete the words later because you would never release anything unedited anyway.  Just write it.  The muse shows up on her terms.  Today may be the day, so be there for it. 

            Let’s examine each worry.  The fix for finishing your book is to write it.  The tip for not perseverating on the query process is to be distracted by writing the next book.  You cannot count minutes between refreshing your email inbox and count the words you put on a page at the same time – or at least I cannot.  Once you sign your contract the time between editing rounds is best spent, you guessed it, writing your next book.  The release, promotions, platform building, and pieces needed to market your book are time-consuming.  However, in every training I have attended, the experts agree there is one bull’s eye that increases sales and rankings.  It is the release of your sequel, so write your next book. 

            I started writing my first book to give myself a mental vacation, an escape from my daily responsibilities.  It made sense to give myself a mental vacation from publishing my first book by diving into the next book.  It was easier to not take criticism of Bear with Me personally when my head was in Round of Applause.  The anxiety of waiting for the wheels of publishing to turn was mitigated by my excitement over Go Scorch Yourself.  Will I be obsessing over my sales rankings of Bear with Me tonight?  No, I will be writing Book 4.  Just write and everything else will fall into place.

Bear with Me by Marilyn Barr




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Blue eyes, dimples, and silky brown hair; Grant Luther has all of Alison’s weaknesses.

When he asks for one last chance to save their marriage, she agrees to relocate their family to isolated Strawberry, Kentucky in pursuit of his career dreams. Grant views Alison’s sensory issues as limitations and protects her from outside threats. When he finds his new job includes changing him into a shifter in a war against the soul-sucking Sluagh he vows to keep the changes a secret. What he doesn’t know is Alison has been hiding a magical secret of her own. One that makes her a target of the Sluagh.

Will Alison emerge from Grant’s shadow to protect her family? And can Grant learn that being different can be a strength not a weakness?

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Marilyn Barr currently resides in the wilds of Kentucky with her husband, son, and rescue cats. When engaging with the real world, she is collecting characters, empty coffee cups, and unused homeschool curricula.

She has a diverse background containing experiences as a child prodigy turned medical school reject, biodefense microbiologist, high school science teacher, homeschool mother of a savant, and advocate for the autistic community.

She would love to hear from readers via her website: www.marilynbarr.com

Or find her on Social Media

Marilyn Barr would love to hear from you. Please post your questions and comments below.

The post Meet Marilyn Barr and her Strawberry Shifters appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Meet Author Joani Ascher

Meet fellow Wild Rose author Joani Ascher. Joani writes mysteries and historical romance, and today she shares about her hobby raising seeing eye dogs and and clever way to come up with titles for a series.

Welcome Joani Ascher…

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I live in New Jersey. That fact may not sound like much but it is a key element in being able to raise Seeing Eye dogs, something I wanted to do ever since I was in the sixth grade in Brooklyn, New York. Over the past twenty-five plus years, my family and I have raised fifteen puppies for The Seeing Eye guide dog school in nearby Morristown. It’s a wonderfully rewarding experience, although sometimes a bittersweet one, when the tiny puppy you’ve civilized is ready to go back to the school for formal training. My puppies can be seen on my website: www.Joaniascher.com.

I also work in the children’s room of a local library, ordering and processing new books. So much fun! I like to read, walk, travel, knit, do puzzles, and I watch entirely too much television.

How did you come up with the title?

Titles don’t always come easily to me. For my six-book Wally Morris cozy mystery series, I started with a thesaurus, and went through it until I found a word that spoke to my sense of what emotion a person would need to feel to commit a murder. I chose the word vengeance, and all the titles in the series are three words starting with “Vengeance.” Five books in the series were published by Avalon, now Thomas & Mercer, and I self-published the last one in the series, Vengeance Acts Up, so I could tie up Wally’s story. By the way, the protagonist was named for a former neighbor who, well into her nineties, used to take college courses. So inspiring.

My newest title is Hope’s Daughter, a historical romance published by The Wild Rose Press. Hope doesn’t actually appear in the story, but she was the mother of the main, orphaned character, whom I envisioned as a white-collar Rosie the Riveter. She took over her boss’s business while he was overseas, but when he came back, even though they’d had a close relationship, she found herself out on the street. With two mouths to feed beside her own, her struggles to survive and her love and sacrifices for those close to her, show her true integrity and courage.

How much research do you do for each book you write?

Research is so much easier to do now than it used to be. For my second Wally Morris mystery, Vengeance Tastes Sweet, I went to the Rutgers University Medical Library to look up information that, just a few years later, was easily accessible via the internet. Some of my research got me interested in pastimes I’d never heard about, for example ice fishing on Lake Champlain and elsewhere. I researched that for Vengeance Runs Cold where the desiccated body of a women was found in the closet of an old house. I also visited the Lake Champlain area to get background for my book.

My research for Hope’s Daughter included scouring reference books about the war years, looking up old magazines, and even checking whether certain records were available in the early years of the twentieth century. That last search was to verify certain points that my editor questioned. Again, the internet came through for me, especially when it came to what the fashions were in the forties and early fifties.

Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?

For Hope’s Daughter, I relied heavily on stories told to me by my mother and mother-in-law about various family members who lived mostly before my time. In trying to put names with imagined faces, I ended up with so much material in my story that I had to cut 14 percent before publication.

How did you choose the genre you write in?

I can’t honestly say that I choose the genres. It is more accurate to say the characters and story choose them, including the use of language, descriptions of atmosphere and settings, and the differences with how things were before the internet age. Although not all my books have been published, I have written stories set in the forties, the sixties, and the seventies, as well as many set in the “present,” which includes everything after the late eighties when I started trying to write for real.

Hope’s Daughter by Joani Ascher[image error]

In February 1941, Jane Baldwin has two goals—one is to become a stock broker and have her own seat on the New York Stock Exchange, something women have never done. The other is to see her sister finish college and have a good life. Meeting a man who flatters her and entices her interest changes her outlook, and she plans for the day she will wed him. Meanwhile, she is a secretary for a young man who is secretly teaching her the business of stock trading.

War rages in Europe, and Prescott Weaver, Jane’s boss, prepares to serve in the U.S. military as soon as possible. Anticipating his absence, he has Jane learn all she must know to run his office for him. Neither he nor Jane realizes how long their reliance on each other must wait before they can acknowledge the love built silently between them.

And when Jane’s world suddenly crashes, she must find a way to survive.

Buy Link
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Excerpt from Hope’s Daughter by Joani Ascher

From the time she entered the crowded room, Jane was unable to tear her eyes away from the speaker. He stood on the podium, above the noisy crowd, imploring them to be quiet. Lloyd Hammer, the man pictured on the flyer, held up his hands and waited for silence.

“It is vital to our country,” he shouted, “that we insist there be no involvement of either our men or our resources in this trouble in Europe.” His accent, with absent Rs, sounded strange to Jane’s New York ears, but she had no time to think about it as a roar of protest rose from the crowd.

“I have family there,” shouted one man. “We can’t ignore them.” Several people echoed his protest.

Lloyd Hammer held up his hands. “We must,” he said, as the assembled people quieted. “We have just struggled through an era of terrible poverty. We cannot and we must not risk losing what we have worked so hard to rebuild.”

Jane watched people turn to each other, questioning what they heard. She questioned it herself. The thought of ignoring the dreadful trouble in Europe went against her principles and her upbringing. Her father, while too old to have fought in the Great War, had several younger cousins who had, of whom he was exceptionally proud. It was at the wedding of one of them that he had met Hope, a woman who, even though much younger than he, shared his concern for the downtrodden of the world. From everything her father had told her, Jane could not imagine either of her parents agreeing with the man on the stage.

Yet he held her riveted, as he did so many others standing beside her.

[image error] Meet Joani Ascher

Joani Wolf Ascher was born in Brooklyn, New York, and, according to early report cards, she enjoyed reading and also writing.  A prolific letter writer, back in the day when people did that sort of thing, she related detailed stories to her friends about funny occurrences. Sadly, no examples of her budding career exist.

Unfortunately she didn’t study writing at the State University of New York at Buffalo where she earned a B.A. before moving with her husband to Cincinnati, back to Buffalo, then to Cleveland, and finally to New Jersey, or her career might have started sooner.

In the Wally Morris mystery series, Joani has taken her love of mysteries and her observations of the people around her and created an amateur sleuth living in a small town whom people have compared to Jessica Fletcher.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joaniascher/

Twitter: @AscherJoani

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joanitheauthor

www.Joaniascher.com

Joani Ascher would love to hear from you and answer your questions.
Please post your comments and questions below.

 

The post Meet Author Joani Ascher appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Zara’s Summer Reads: 10 Novels to Enjoy

Here are ten brief book reviews for books that have I enjoyed reading over the last few months. There’s romance, fantasy , a thriller, and a mystery too. Maybe one of these books you entice you to curl up and relax.

**A Zara West Guest Author**

Always by Lita Harris

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Set in a small beach town in Rhode Island, a woman with a closed-off heart has a choice to make when the man she thought abandoned her, arrives unannounced, and declares his love. A story of mistakes, loss, and second chances perfect for readers who love small town romance.

 

 

All I Ask by Corinne Michaels

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Best friends make plenty of wrong decisions before they end up where they belong in each other’s arms. A well-woven tale of regret and struggle about what happens when you don’t follow your heart.

One Night Wife by Ainslie Paton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A light-hearted, clever romance about a lovable con man and the woman who unwittingly cons him into loving her. A fun read.

 

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fantasy at its best. Twists and unique characters make this magical story about a wizard, a peasant girl, and an evil woods shine. Loved it!

 

Man Fast by Krista Sandor

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A light-hearted romance based on the premise of a “man fast” i.e. having nothing to with men for, in this case, 72 days. I had some difficulty with the term man-fast as it didn’t always flow in the text and the heroine didn’t really stick to it. But the romantic couple have enough chemistry to carry you through the story nevertheless.  All in all a fun read.

Archer’s Voice by Mia Sheridan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A romance story that pulls you in and makes you care about the hero and heroine. Great read.

 

Full Curl by Dave   Butler

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

More of a police procedural than a mystery, the story has a real sense of realism. and the characters are shown doing the hard work it takes to catch poachers in Baniff National Park. Well-worth reading.

 

Sooner or Later by Elizabeth Adler

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An edgy thriller with a man bent on revenge, an unsuspecting chef with a restaurant to run, and a recently retired NYC cop makes for a real page turner. Beautifully plotted, you won’t be able to stop turning the pages.

The Engagement Game by Jenny Holiday

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This fake fiancee romance stars a delightful heroine of Indian descent who tangles with a Jewish marketing CEO who doesn’t do relationships in this touching story that involves good causes, a nasty father, and a series of dogs in need of love. Great book

A New Leash on Love by Debbie Burns

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Love dogs? This is the romance for you. The heroine runs an animal shelter and works hard to get her dogs and cats and more critters adopted to good homes. But when a puppy is dropped off by a charming man, attraction sparks. However although both are good people, neither is in a good place for romance. With two charming children, a cast of animals awaiting adoption, and plenty of side characters, this book tugs on your heart strings. Highly recommended.

View all my reviews

The post Zara’s Summer Reads: 10 Novels to Enjoy appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Irene Vartanoff: From Comics to Romance

What do comics and romance have in common? They are both ways to tell stories. My guest today Irene Vartanoff began as a writer for DC comics. Today she writes romance. But let me allow her to tell her story.

Welcome Irene…

When did you first start writing and when did you finish your first book?

My professional career started with writing a handful of comic books decades ago for DC Comics. Since then I’ve worked in a variety of non-artistic roles for many publishers, including Marvel Comics, Harlequin, Bantam, and others.

I segued from comics to writing novels accidentally. I had a ball editing and later writing online romance comics early this century (I love saying that!). When that company’s comics experiment ended, I looked around for something else to write. A paperback publisher had just opened a new line of female action fantasy novels and had a contest going. The prize? Publication.

I decided to enter the contest and write an action-oriented fantasy novel about the comic book world I knew so well. Worried that I might lose steam partway into the story, I sought a source of support. I wanted to challenge myself, but I also did not want to set myself up to fail.

That’s when I discovered NaNoWriMo, the National Novel Writing Month challenge. Each November, NaNoWriMo is the online host for a writers’ challenge: write 50,000 words in just one month. You create an online identity and post your daily word count and encourage each other along the way. All you have to do is write 1,667 words per day, and in 30 days you’ll have written 50,000 words, which equals a short novel. Thousands of people of all ages take the NaNoWriMo writing challenge every November. I did write my 50,000 words in November, checking in constantly and posting my word counts online.

In the next months I added thousands more words and revised my story. Finally it was done and I submitted Temporary Superheroine to the publisher. I felt great. I’d done it! I’d written a complete novel! I haven’t looked back. Since then I’ve written at least one million words and published fifteen of my novels.

Where do you get your ideas?

I’m a longtime romance fan, so when I started a sweet Western romance series, Selkirk Family Ranch, it was natural for me to mentally mine the romances I’d read for situations and character types. Captive of the Cattle Baron features a domineering hero because I’ve always wanted to give domineering heroes their comeuppance. And I did. I continued the abduction theme of the series with Saving the Soldier, in which the heroine kidnaps the hero. Yes, really, she does, not that the result is exactly what she’d planned. Cowgirl Rescue, the third book in the series, involves a very crooked strip poker game that creates an enforced visit to the isolated Selkirk ranch and several reversals of who’s in charge. As I focus on how each character is likely to act and react, the ideas for twists and turns come to me naturally.

How did you choose the genre you write in?

I think my genres choose me. When I got the idea for Second Chance Reunion, I intended a romance in the old-fashioned style about a heroine who has yearned for an unattainable man for years, a man she hasn’t seen since a terrible tragedy wrecked his life. Once I brought them together for what I thought would be a romantic reunion in which she would help him make a new beginning, the story started to twist. Another man appeared, a very attractive man with a major grudge against my hero. Or was he my hero after all? As my heroine learned the full story of the tragic past, including her own past, I realized I had written a Gothic romance. Although I did inject a couple of light scenes near the conclusion, basically this was a story full of drama and angst. The book’s first cover showed a cheery romantic cliche, which did not represent the main mood of the story. The current cover, which I love, emphasizes the brooding darkness of this fraught reunion in the New Mexico desert.

Second Chance Reunion by Irene Vartanoff

Gothic romance in the classic tradition

An isolated mansion, a brooding hero, a strong heroine—and another man equally haunted by the tragedy of the past. Which man holds the key to the heroine’s future happiness?

Hollywood film editor Sara Finer has loved brilliant movie director Lucas Steel from afar for years. She finally has a chance to win his heart when she’s sent to his New Mexico desert retreat, but there’s a catch. Lucas abandoned his career after the accidental death on location of his ex-wife. Sara’s mission is to convince him to finish the film—a hot-button issue made hotter by the sudden appearance of his bitterest rival.

Two tortured men fighting over the haunting memory of a long-dead lover—and over Sara’s love and loyalty today. This stand-alone sweet contemporary romance keeps the bedroom door closed yet tackles predatory Hollywood behavior past and present.

Buy

Learn more about Irene Vartanoff

Website: http://www.irenevartanoff.com

Social Media Links:

https://www.facebook.com/irenevartanoffauthor
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7965076.Irene_Vartanoff
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/irene-vartanofftanoff




Irene would love to talk with you.
Please post your questions and comments below.

The post Irene Vartanoff: From Comics to Romance appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Romance Author Karen Hulene Bartell

Please welcome Karen Helene Bartell. A fellow Wild Rose author, she writes historical Western romances. Today she talks about writing longhand, researching her stories, marketing strategies, and discovering a book title in Big Bend National Park.

Welcome Karen Hulene Bartell…

Thanks so much for hosting me on your blog, Zara!

Is there an event in your life that affected you as a writer?

Ten years ago, I went to New Orleans for Mardi Gras and broke a baby finger catching beads. (Long story.) For six weeks, I wore a cast that came up to my elbow, and I was unable to type. As a result, I wrote longhand and discovered that my writing literally flowed. The keyboard only got in the way of my imagination. True, I then had to type it (after my cast came off), but the creative process has never gone more smoothly.

Where is your favorite place to write?

I write on a French Provincial desk I finished myself. The keyboard slides into a drawer, and the computer screen overhangs it. Two orange-striped cats are stretched out, covering half the desktop. An open travel brochure is within sight, calling to me for when the quarantine ends, and my WIP—Kyoto: Tale of the Fox—covers the desk’s other half.

How much research do you do for each book you write?

I enjoy researching, so I do quite a bit for each of my books. However, for Wild Rose Pass, set in 1880, I was forced to do more than usual. I traveled to the area, of course, but while at the historic fort, I researched dusty quartermaster reports for historical tidbits. I learned a friend’s great-great-grandfather, José Maria Bill, had not only worked as an Indian scout, guide, and packer for the fort in the 1870s, but had been captured as a young child and raised by Comanches.

 I also came across the records of a Colonel Benjamin Grierson, who began Army life as an enlisted man, was field promoted during the Civil War, and became the commanding officer at Fort Davis in the 1880s.

And I thought…

What if I combined Bill’s Comanche experiences  with Grier’s field promotion to create my fictional hero?

Voila! Ben Williams was born—Ben from Benjamin Grierson and Williams from the surname Bill. Research found not only the story, but the name.

How do you market your work? What avenues have you found to work best for your genre?

If I had unlimited funds for a blitz campaign, someone would be writing this blog for me, but since by necessity I’m a penny-pinching, DIY, wear-many-hats kind of author, here’s what’s worked for me so far.

Every month, I send out a newsletter to keep my readers interested and informed about upcoming books. I’ve learned cover photos only hold interest so long, but pictures of our dog or cats with the books captures attention. I also do newsletter shares. (If anyone’s interested, email me at info@karenhulenebartell.com.)

I create virtual tours via blogs and also do blog shares. (Again, if anyone’s interested, email me at info@karenhulenebartell.com.)

I post on Facebook and Twitter. And thanks to helpful WRP authors, have learned how to post on Instagram . Again, photos of pets with the latest release gains the most attention.

From religiously reading the posts on wrppromo@groups.io, I’ve picked and chosen what promos would most likely to work for me. This time around, I contacted AuthorsXP to help organize a Street Team. About twenty people signed on to promote my upcoming release. To their ranks, I invited several personal friends to join.

The results are still out on these tactics, but I hope the tips I’ve shared help raise your sales numbers.

How did you come up with the title?

Sixteen years ago, my husband and I spent Christmas week hiking and horseback riding in Big Bend National Park. Driving home early that New Year’s morning, we missed the turnoff in Alpine and followed TX-118 north. Snow-covered and glinting against the frosty blue January sky, a remote jumble of mountain peaks and ranges beckoned as they rose above the desert floor. I was enchanted. Gazing at the sky island for the first time, wide-eyed, I wondered whether those rocky pinnacles were mirages or optical delusions.

But as the craggy peaks loomed larger (a mile high, I later learned), I realized they were no hallucination or Fata Morgana. A hasty glance at the map told us these were the Davis Mountains. As we approached, vertical basalt columns rose like thousands of giant fingers reaching for the sky. The palisades, buttes, and bluffs towered above both sides of the highway with a raw, majestic beauty, and I breathed a contented sigh, sensing a homecoming. A sign said Wild Rose Pass, and a title was born.

Wild Rose Pass by Karen Hulene Bartell[image error]

 Cadence McShane, free-spirited nonconformist, yearns to escape the rigid code, clothes, and sidesaddles of 1880s military society in Fort Davis, Texas. She finds the daring new lieutenant exhilarating, but as the daughter of the commanding officer, she is expected to keep with family tradition and marry West Point graduate James West.

Orphaned, Comanche-raised, and always the outsider looking in, Ben Williams yearns to belong. Cadence embodies everything he craves, but as a battlefield-commissioned officer with the Buffalo Soldiers instead of a West Point graduate, he is neither accepted into military society nor considered marriageable.

Can two people of different worlds, drawn together by conflicting needs, flout society and forge a life together on the frontier?

Excerpt:

Cadence gingerly accepted Ben’s hand, but the moment their fingers touched, static electricity bolted up her wrist and along her arm, making the downy hairs stand on end. Bolts of energy raced toward her shoulder, tingling and raising the hairs on the back of her neck. Then she shivered as the shock waves barreled down her spine, and butterflies tickled her stomach. She glanced at her hand in his. As if a part of her that had been lost was reconnected, the two melded into one.

Does he feel the connection, too? She gazed into his eyes and saw the same intensity. As he put his left hand on her waist, she responded with a light shudder. Dreamlike, she rested her hand on his shoulder, and off they danced as if they prepared for this moment all their lives. When the music’s tempo increased, she held on tighter, dancing in perfect unison as her body pressed ever closer, instinctively responding to his subtle dips and sways. After making several rounds on the dance floor, she turned toward him, breathless. “I didn’t know you could dance.”

“You mean waltz?” He chuckled. “I’ve joined in Comanche dances around campfires most of my life.”

Laughing, she let herself be swept away in yet another dizzying round.

 Buy Links:

Amazon eBook: https://amzn.to/2vQP41r

Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/2VCtCYy

Barnes & Noble NOOK Book: https://bit.ly/32zhDfZ

Barnes & Noble Paperback: https://bit.ly/2T1V3JM

[image error] Learn More About Karen Hulene Bartell

Author of the Trans-Pecos, Sacred Emblem, Sacred Journey, and Sacred Messenger series, Karen is a best-selling author, motivational keynote speaker, wife, and all-around pilgrim of life. She writes multicultural, offbeat love stories that lift the spirit. Born to rolling-stone parents who moved annually, Bartell found her earliest playmates as fictional friends in books. Paperbacks became her portable pals. Ghost stories kept her up at night—reading feverishly. The paranormal was her passion. Westerns spurred her to write (pun intended). Wanderlust inherent, Karen enjoyed traveling, although loathed changing schools. Novels offered an imaginative escape. An only child, she began writing her first novel at the age of nine, learning the joy of creating her own happy endings. Professor emeritus of the University of Texas at Austin, Karen resides in the Hill Country with her husband Peter and her “mews”—three rescued cats and a rescued *Cat*ahoula Leopard dog.

Connect with Karen:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenHuleneBartell

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarenHuleneBart

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/karenhulenebartell/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/611950.Karen_Hulene_Bartell

Website: http://www.KarenHuleneBartell.com/

Email: info@KarenHuleneBartell.com

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/karenhulenebartell

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenhulenebartell/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/karen-hulene-bartell

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenhulenebartell/

AUTHORSdb: https://authorsdb.com/community/17847-karen-hulene-bartell

Karen Hulene Bartell would love to hear from you.
Please post your thoughts and comments below.

The post Romance Author Karen Hulene Bartell appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Michelle Libby Writes Small Town Contemporary Romance

Today I am interviewing  Romance writer Michelle Libby. She talks about her inspirations and has a great writing tip for us.

Welcome, Michelle Libby…

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Thanks for having me on your blog, Zara. It’s a crazy time in our lives and keeping things routine is important. I’m Michelle Libby, a trained journalist and author with a variety of books up for sale on Amazon. I write contemporary romance with a hint of snark and sass. I’m social distancing in Maine with my two adult children and my police officer husband, a twelve-year-old yellow lab, who acts three, and a two-year-old Bengal cat.

Is there an event in your life that affected you as a writer?

 I’ve always enjoyed writing. When I was a kid, I would spend the weekend with my dad at his office. While he worked, I created my own newspaper with stories and photos. In eighth grade, I wrote an article for The Hartford Courant.

The thing that really got my journalist juices flowing was when I wrote to Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher in space. She wrote back to us, which we received the day after the space shuttle Challenger exploded. A journalist visited our school that day. When the letter from Christa arrived, she quoted me and a media circus ensued. The day after her article was published two helicopters landed on our sports field to interview me and our class. I was on the nightly news with Dan Rather and the Courant article went out over the Associate Press wire. I received copies of the story from all over the country and friends of ours called my parents to say they saw me on the nightly news.

As far as fiction…I devoured Harlequin Romance novels by the box full. In college, I would get a monthly subscription and read the books in one weekend. Eventually, I told myself that I could write of these books. Who better to write them, since I loved them soooo much. So, I did. And, then I learned about RWA and other writer groups, which helped me learn more. It also introduced me to some of my greatest writer friends.

What interesting jobs have you had? How have these jobs affected your writing?

 As the wife of a police officer, I bounced around from job to job, never having the same position for more than four years. I’ve had a daycare, taught reading, worked in eldercare. I’ve been the editor of a newspaper, a staff writer for a few local newspapers and I’ve been a stay-at=home mom.

Every single one of these jobs has taught me something or introduced me to unique individuals. One of the characters in a book I’m going through with my critique partners, is based on a man I worked with for years. He was so interesting and passionate about life, that I knew he would make a great personality in a book.

What project are you working on now or what book will be next?

 The project I’m writing right now, is a middle grade pirate time-travel novel. I’m having so much fun with it. I can’t wait to share it with everyone. Since I taught reading, I know the importance of finding books for boys to read. I had to do that with my own son. Creating a book that could be that adventure novel for young readers that gets them hooked on reading, is a dream for me.

The next book that most likely will be published is Annie Get Your Gun.  This is an adult romance about a professional pistol shooter, who is determined to be the best, but will it be at all costs?

Writing tip for authors

I’m always looking for tips that work for me from other authors. I’m excited to share with you one of my tricks for writing more, writing faster. and enjoying reaching your goals.

The trick and tip I want to share today is writing sprints. There was an author who said, you can do anything for 20 minutes. Write for 20 minutes every day. If you want to keep going, set the timer for another 20 minutes. I finished two books this way – 20 minutes at a time.

When your write every day, you also start typing faster, which can increase your output. For years, I very rarely wrote more than one 20-minute chunk per day. I was working full time and keeping all the volunteer balls in the air, but the books still got done.

Keep spreadsheets and lists of word totals or check off on a calendar when you do write for 20 minutes. Those types of data trackers can keep you motivated and excited about the work getting completed. Nothing is more satisfying than writing THE END on a novel.

Breaking the Story by Michelle Libby [image error]
​       Everyone wants something from the editor of the Serenity Harbor Gazette Erin Ridge. Lucky for her this time it’s the hot firefighters in town. However, they are incredibly busy with a large number of fires in the island. Despite that she finds time to meet with hunky firefighter Seth Greenway for all of the details of the fires and the firefighters. 


Seth knows he’s being set up with the darling of Serenity Harbor when he’s asked to be the subject of a story on the fire department. He can’t help but want to get to know Erin as long as they can keep things professional. Hurting her would mean being blackballed from the department, but saving her life becomes a daily habit and he finds himself being drawn to her magnetic personality.


When Erin accuses someone Seth knows of setting all of the fires in town, trouble brews between the couple. She is determined to break the story without Seth’s support, causing a rift between them. Erin wants to do what’s right and Seth has to determine what is more important, the firefighter brotherhood or love.

BUY HERE – AMAZON

[image error]Thank you for having me. If people want to get in touch with me, I’m on Facebook, mostly, at Author Michelle Libby. I have a website, www.MichelleLibby.com and can

be emailed at AuthorMichelleLibby@gmail.com.

 

 

 

 

Michelle would love to hear from you.
Please post your questions and comments below.

The post Michelle Libby Writes Small Town Contemporary Romance appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Cate Tayler Writes Sports Romances

Today, I am  interviewing romance author Cate Tayler. She talks about her writing life, her military experience, and her upcoming release. AND I am honored to be revealing the cover of Body Stroke for the first time on the web.

Welcome Cate Tayler 

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I’m originally from Connecticut, grew up on Long Island Sound. But after a tour in the Air Force, where I met my husband, I settled down in Maryland. Center of the state, 3+ hours to the nearest coast. But I’ve gotten used to it and I enjoy the mountains and lakes here.

I am a mom to four, a stepmom to three, and a grandma to one little girl who, at the time of this interview, is due at any moment! I also have a rescue lab/husky mix, Shiloh, whom we adore.

What interesting jobs have you had? How have those jobs affected your writing?

I was an intel analyst in the Air Force, and then I worked at the State Department as a security liaison with Diplomatic Security. Both sound so much more glamorous than they were! But they were definitely interesting.

They haven’t played much of a role in my currently published pieces, but I have been working on a trilogy centering around three female Air Force veterans. That’s my labor of love. What I’ve experienced and the experiences of the connections I’ve made do influence those stories.

I also work for a Catholic school and non-profit outreach center, which inspired me to work on a cozy mystery I will be shopping to publishers this summer.

Have you written a book you love that you have not been able to get published?

Oh yes! I mentioned it above. It’s the first book in a trilogy of female Air Force veterans, all dealing with their own issues once back home, and all tied together by their relationship with an Afghan woman they knew when overseas who disappeared. I have come so very close to having it picked up, but in the end I’ve gotten the same thing. My heroine (who suffers PTSD) just isn’t “likeable” enough. I respectfully disagree. I think readers would like a female combat vet who isn’t warm and fuzzy. But I know it will find a home somewhere or I’ll self-publish the trilogy on my own.

Can you tell us about any other upcoming books, series, or writing plans?

I am planning on releasing book two in the Lacrosse My Heart series, Spin Move, this summer. I am also nearly done with a new cozy mystery series that I hope to pitch to publishers this summer, as well. And I have three other projects –Fast Break (Lacrosse My Heart #3), Love Me Tonight (Mystic Point #5), and a holiday romance—I want to work on before the end of the year.

Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?

Body Check is a complete work of fiction. However, there are elements from real life that inspired me. First, I chose lacrosse as the focal point because all of my children play, or have played, and my husband is a coach of my daughter’s team. I made my heroine Puerto Rican and determined, because I wanted my older daughter to see herself in a character. And, funny story, I created the fictional Women’s Professional Lacrosse League because at the time there wasn’t one in real life. But shortly after writing the book, the WPLL came into existence! One of the changes I made for the re-release of this book was to change the name of my women’s league, so I wouldn’t run into any trademark issues and so I could take more liberties with how the sport was run.

Every one of my books has a bit of me in it, too. So there are certain scenes or bits of dialogue that I may have taken from real life.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention that my children actually came up with the series name, Lacrosse My Heart!

Body Check by Cate Taylor

Professional lacrosse player Avalon Rivera, “The Ice Queen”, has been in love with her best friend’s older brother since she was a kid. But after his stinging rejection, she wrote him off for good. Eight years later, he’s back in her life and the lacrosse star is forced to work with him to salvage her team’s reputation, or she’ll lose the career she’s fought hard for.

JJ Jennings is a premier player in men’s professional lacrosse, both on the field and off. But when he is reunited with Ava, the young girl he once thought of like a sister, he’s tempted into becoming a one-woman man. If only he can convince The Ice Queen to give him another chance to heat up her sheets and thaw her heart.

(Previously published as Taking the Shot)

Now for the Cover Reveal!
Isn’t it gorgeous!
[image error]
Releasing May 8th!

Learn More about Cate Tayler

Website: https://www.catetayler.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorcatetayler/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cate-tayler

Twitter: https://twitter.com/writercate

Instagram: https://instagram.com/writercate

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cate-Tayler/e/B06WW17WKV

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16485484.Cate_Tayler

Cate Tayler would love to hear from you.
Please post your questions and comments below.

The post Cate Tayler Writes Sports Romances appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Romantic Suspense by Juno Rushdan

I am thrilled to interview romantic suspense Harlequin author Juno Rushdan. As you will learn, she brings an amazing background to her high action, sexy romances.

Welcome Juno…

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I’m a veteran intelligence officer and use my background when writing romantic thrillers. At least one main character in all of my books is prior military and values of service before self comes across in my stories. We’ve moved around quite a bit. I’m a native New Yorker, but we’ve moved around quite a bit. My husband is also from NY, but we met overseas. I’ve visited more than twenty different countries and have lived in England and Germany. Right now, I live in DC area with my husband, two rambunctious kids, and a spoiled rescue dog.

Is there an event in your life that affected you as a writer?

9/11 changed me in a way that’s hard to explain. I was in the Air Force going through intelligence school at the time and saw the second plane crash. It deepened my love of country in a profound way. One of my characters discusses this in my book EVERY LAST BREATH. That particular story is quite relevant today since it’s about government operatives trying to stop a madman with a vendetta from unleashing a bioagent that would start a pandemic.

What do you do when you are not writing?

I’m spending time with my family. Homeschooling my kids since they closed the schools early. Or playing games and watch movies with them.

What are some of your favorite things? Foods. Flowers. Books. Whatever.

My favorite destination for relaxation is the Amalfi Coast, Italy for its stunning seascape, cliffside lemon groves, terraced vineyards, amazing pasta and to-die-for vino. I also love big, bold red wine, like Prisoner. My favorite flowers are peonies.

What interesting jobs have you had? How have those jobs affected your writing?

Supporting special forces and poring over chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or high-yield explosive threat assessments day after day definitely shaped the foundation for my Final Hour series. But the high-operations tempo I’m used to from the military and the idea of fighting for the greater good is in all my books, especially the Hard Core Justice series.

Do you ever experience writer’s block?

Not quite writer’s block. If I can visualize a scene, then I can write it. Sometimes I can’t see it in my head because something about it is off, but once I work through the issue, I’m good.

What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?

In HOSTILE PURSUIT my favorite is chapter ten. It’s a water cooler chapter. When I passed out some early copies of this book to some people in my husband’s office, who work in the intelligence field, they were all talking about this chapter because my characters are faced with tough choices that impact the lives of others.

Can you tell us about any other upcoming books, series, or writing plans?

I just signed a new six-book contract that I’d like to share.

Women’s/Romance

Former U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer Juno Rushdan’s six untitled books, including a continuation of her Hard Core Justice series, and the launch of a new series about disavowed CIA operatives that follows four members of an Assassination Team code-named TOPAZ, who were framed, and now on the run, must survive long enough to clear their names, to Denise Zaza at Harlequin Intrigue, in a multi-book deal, for publication in September 2021, by Sara Megibow at kt literary.

Hostile Pursuit, Hard Core Justice #1 by Juno Rushdan [image error]

When ruthless killers target them, even a safe house isn’t safe.

Only twenty-four hours remain until marshal Nick McKenna’s informant, Lori Carpenter, will testify against a powerful drug cartel. Nick has kept her safe for an entire year, but now all hell is breaking loose. With a team of cold-blooded assassins closing in, the by-the-book lawman decides to go rogue. He’ll risk his life for duty…and put it all on the line for his irresistible witness.

“I’m going to warn you: you will not be able to put this book down.” -Anita, Goodreads reviewer

“This edge of your seat romantic thriller had me hooked from the beginning and didn’t let up until the sizzling conclusion.” -David, Goodreads reviewer

“A suspenseful, jam-packed read!! I couldn’t put the book down because I wanted to know what would happen next-and it was a lot!”-Jewels Book Blog, Goodreads reviewer

“What a wild ride Hostile Pursuit was from the first page to the last!”-Katie, Goodreads reviewer

BUY LINKS
Amazon   | B&N |  KOBO |   iBooks

 

SPECIAL for my Readers!

GIVEAWAY: To celebrate the release of HOSTILE PURSUIT, Juno is giving away a nine-book bundle and a $25 gift card. Open internationally. Must be 18 years old to win.

WIN SIGNED INTRIGUE BOOK BUNDLE + GIFT CARD

[image error]More about Juno Rushdan

Juno is the award-winning author of steamy, action-packed romantic thrillers that keep you on the edge of your seat. She writes about kick-ass heroes and strong heroines fighting for their lives as well as their happily-ever-after. As a veteran Air Force Intelligence Officer, she uses her background supporting special forces to craft realistic stories that make you sweat and swoon. Juno currently lives in the DC area with her patient husband, two rambunctious kids, and a spoiled rescue dog. To receive a FREE book from Juno, sign up for her newsletter at junorushdan.com/mailing-list/. Also be sure to follow Juno on BookBub for the latest on sales at bit.ly/BookBubJuno.

Feel Free to Stalk Juno on Social Media

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/junorushdan/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/junorushdan/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/junorushdan

Juno Rushdan would love to answer your questions.
Please post your thoughts and comments below.

The post Romantic Suspense by Juno Rushdan appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Writing with Splash: An Online Writing Workshop

I love teaching online writing workshops, and this coming month, May 2020, I will be giving one of my favorites.

Writing with Splash: Enriching Your Writing With Sensory Language, builds on my background in teaching the arts. The arts are a multi-sensory way of expressing our feelings and experiences. Fine art is visual and tactile. Music is movement and sound. Dance is movement and kinesthetics. Drama is both visual, auditory, and movement-based. All of them elicit emotion both from the creator and from the audience.

 

What could be more essential for a writer to master?

Eliciting emotion is exactly what we want to do in our writing no matter what genre we write. By consciously feathering in sensory images and experiences we can build character, set mood, increase tension. and heighten conflict. My online writing workshop will cover eight of the senses, how they work, and when, where and how to use them in your current WIP to set the scene, deepen emotion, and spark up action. Many resources for describing sensory elements will be provided.

Lesson 1: Our Senses – How they work and why writers can’t leave them out
Lesson 2: Our Basic Senses: Writing about touch
Lesson 3: Our Basic Senses: Writing about smell
Lesson 4: Our Basic Senses: Writing about taste
Lesson 5: Our Basic Senses: Writing about sound
Lesson 6: Our Basic Senses: Writing about vision
Lesson 7: Going Beyond: Writing about the vestibular sense and kinesthetic sense
Lesson 8: Putting it all together: Examples and cautions
Bonus Materials

Extra – Every participant in this workshop will receive a read-through of their first three chapters, with special attention to the use of sensory language.

And what better time to take an online writing workshop, when many of us are all stuck inside?

You can sign up for my workshop, which is sponsored by my local RWA chapter, Southern Tier Authors of Romance, here. WRITING WITH SPLASH

“All our knowledge begins with the senses, proceeds then to the understanding, and ends with reason. There is nothing higher than reason.”

immanuel kant, Critique of Pure Reason

[image error]

Do you have a favorite sensory image from a book you have read or a quote about the senses? 
I welcome your thoughts and comments.

The post Writing with Splash: An Online Writing Workshop appeared first on Zara West Romance.

Meet Awesome Author Arell Rivers

I am pleased to interview contemporary romance author Arell Rivers. She is here to talk about her most recent books and her writing life.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

My name is Arell Rivers, and I write steamy celebrity contemporary romances ~ about rock stars, reality TV stars, actors.