Who Wants To Marry A Cowboy?: 5 Fun Facts with Abigail Sharpe

Abigail Sharpe‘s debut with Forever Yours, WHO WANTS TO MARRY A COWBOY?, releases today! Congratulations, Abigail!!

This dynamic author (who’s always smiling whenever I see her) is also a mother, a karaoke singer, and a very active volunteer in her local romance writers organization. She’s currently serving as president of First Coast RWA.

Jessica Lemmon, author of TEMPTING THE BILLIONAIRE, dubs Abigail’s debut as “a rich and rustic tale of family, friendship, and love guaranteed to lasso your heart.”

Today Abigail is sharing some fun facts about her debut novel and would like to invite you to enter her Goodreads giveaway (ends May 9th) of her book.

Please give our guest a warm welcome and tell us what you like most about cowboys and cowboy romances for a chance to win an e-copy of Abigail’s book as well as a signed copy of my book, LOVING LADY MARCIA.

Welcome, Abigail!

Who Wants To Marry A Cowboy

Forever Yours

May 7, 2013

Something Borrowed, Someone New . . .

There’s nothing florist Ainsley Fairfax won’t do to help her sister get the love of her life—even if it means taking her place on a bachelorette weekend at a Wyoming ranch so Cecelia can sail off with the man of her dreams. Ainsley is determined to spend the time keeping her head down and her heart safely tucked away—until an encounter with the ranch’s hunky owner gets her heart—and steamy desires—to bloom . . .

Riley Pommer doesn’t want to be lassoed into any relationship. But with the family ranch in dire straits, Riley knows his sisters’ crazy plan to turn the ranch into the setting for a dating competition—and using Riley as the bait—is the only thing standing between them and foreclosure. But the rules of the game change the instant Riley lays eyes on the spirited Ainsley. Now, as others try to stampede over their love, can Riley prove to Ainsley that true love is a prize worth fighting for?

 

5 Fun Facts About WHO WANTS TO MARRY A COWBOY? 

1. The characters of the final version don’t match the original.

While the final version of Who Wants to Marry a Cowboy features eight women vying for the attentions of the unwilling Riley, the original story had 16 women competing for his affections.  I introduced them all at once in the manuscript, like a roll call.

Riley’s family consists of him, his brother, and his two sisters, and Ainsley has a sister.  In the original, Riley’s oldest sister had a toddler and his father was still around, plus Ainsley was an only child.

Secondary character Meagan Donnelly’s name was originally Siobhan Clough, but none of my beta readers knew how to pronounce it or what her heritage was.

2. Who Wants to Marry a Cowboy? is my first complete novel, but it’s been rewritten so many times I could have three other manuscripts done instead.  

I learn quickly, though.  I’m lucky enough to have a two-book contract, and the second book, Who Wants to Marry a Doctor, was written only once.  Now, I haven’t yet gotten any markups back from my editor, but I’m hoping that statement stays true.

3. I have a Mary Sue in Who Wants to Marry a Cowboy?  According to Urban Dictionary, a Mary Sue character is usually written by a beginning author. Often, the Mary Sue is a self-insert with a few “improvements” (ex. better body, more popular, etc). The Mary Sue character is almost always beautiful, smart, etc… In short, she is the “perfect” girl.  Except my Mary Sue (her name is Robin) is me without the self-improvements.  Well, okay, she might weigh less.  Her most notable Abigail trait is the ability to talk a cowboy’s boots off. (No, not that way.) She works computer support, which was my job in college.  The story she tells about a man who used his mouse upside down really happened to me.

4. My book birthday is exactly a year after I got an offer on the story.  May 7, 2012 – May 7, 2013.  It seems so fast and yet so slow at the same time.  May is my new favorite month.  (Don’t tell April.)

5. I work as a technical writer, so even when I’m not writing, I’m writing.  Making the move to fiction was hard – my critique group kept telling me the story read like a user manual.  Insert Tab A into Slot B.  I eventually learned to suppress my instructional side and let the romance take over.

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Share your favorite cowboy romances with Abigail and win an e-copy of WHO WANTS TO MARRY A COWBOY? and a paperback copy of LOVING LADY MARCIA. Giveaway open to US/CA. Ends 5/10.

If you’ve found this post on Kieran’s Goodreads page, click here to leave a comment.

 

Abigail is a Boston-bred Yankee now eating grits and saying “y’all” in North Central Florida. She dreamed more of being a stage actress or joining the CIA than being an author. While she still enjoys participating in community theater productions and singing karaoke, the secret-agent career was replaced by hours at her computer, writing stories of love and laughter and happily ever after.

Abigail lives with her husband, two kids, and one crazy princess puppy. She is part of a kitchen blog with friends – chickletsinthekitchen.com – and you can keep up with her on Goodreads or at her website – abigailsharpe.com.

 

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Claiming your prize: Winner will be contacted via email and will have 7 days to reply, or a new winner will be chosen.

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