Author Anjie Harrte: author

Today we are featuring Linda Bolton a fellow Masterkoda. Linda and I took part in a blog tour last year (my first) and since then I got to know of the novel she had that she was trying to get out there to you readers. On December 29^th, 2012, Linda’s long time dream came through and today I am honoured to feature her book on my blog.

Linda:

Anjie, Thank you so much for hosting me today. I really appreciate it!

My first novel, Take 2, was released Dec 29, 2012. It’s a contemporary romance about 40+ year old characters, dealing with love, loss and lots of travel. Check it out!

Anjie:

Welcome Linda and it is my pleasure to have you. I read the first three chapters on Amazon about a week ago and must say I am intrigued about it, so go ahead and tell us about your book.

Take 2

Take 2 is a story of love, loss and loving again. There are travels, roadblocks, and struggles.

Alexandra Daniels is a forty-something, hard-working mom, wife and employee. Her life has been plodding along at a snail’s pace and she’s longing for excitement. She wins a trip to her favorite talk show in New York, the Veronica Becker Show, and it just so happens that the actor of her dreams is a guest, Derek Dunbar! Is Alex’s life about to change?

Derek Dunbar is Scottish, an actor and a hunk! Every woman in America drools after him. He has his pick of women but stinks at relationships. At forty, is he longing for a more meaningful relationship? Does he even know how to have one? Is he willing to make the effort or will it just be too complicated?

Chapter 1

Alex sat in her chair, her eyes wide, staring at the screen. She loved the Veronica Becker Show and was a faithful viewer. During her lunch hour at work she would rush to the break room to turn it on. Veronica had viewer contests every week. Alex had never won anything but that didn’t prevent her from signing up each week in hopes, knowing full well the likelihood of winning was minimal at best.

“Today one lucky viewer will win a trip for two to visit New York and my show. An all-expense-paid weekend!” announced Veronica Becker, touted as the ‘“Every Woman’s Woman’” by national magazines.

Veronica Becker had become a household name, a chef for the everyday woman: quick, inexpensive meals that were tasty, too. Veronica had taken her love of cooking to television and added a bit of fashion, some down to earth chat with the audience, and interviews with the latest stars. She was health conscious and wanted the women in her audience to look their best at any age. She also loved to give things away. Coming from a modest family, she believed in giving back. Generous to a fault, if there was an earthquake somewhere, a typhoon, or tornado, Veronica was there to help out.

“Our winner is Alexandra Daniels of Plano, Texas! Congratulations! We’ll be giving Alexandra a call today!”

Her co-workers were staring at her. Had she really won?

“Alex! That’s you! You won!” they all shouted.

“Oh...my...God! I can’t believe it! I won!”

Alex had the hardest time concentrating the rest of the afternoon. As a customer service rep for a marketing company, she was usually swamped with work but couldn’t concentrate. Two o’clock rolled around and Alex’s cell rang, a number she didn’t recognize.

“Hello?”

“Is this Alexandra Daniels?”

“Yes, it is”

“Alexandra, this is the Veronica Becker show. I am pleased to tell you that you are the winner of a trip for two to New York City and tickets for the show.”

“I can’t believe it! Are you sure?” Alex was still in shock. She wanted to make sure there was no mistake. Josh would never believe her.

“Yes, you’ve won! We will send your tickets out next week. Your trip is for April 15^th to 17th. Can you make it those dates?”

“Oh yes! I’ll make it work! Thank you so much!”

“We’ll get back to you Monday to finalize the details. Have a great weekend!”

“Oh, I will now!” Alex was amazed! It was true, she actually won! She was already mentally packing when reality hit. Josh would never take off work to go. Maybe Mattie could go with her....no, she had school. She could ask Kathleen, her best friend and co-worker, but they couldn’t take off at the same time. Kathleen was her back up so one of them had to be there. No, she’d have to go alone. Well, it was about time she did something adventurous. This was probably the most exciting thing that had happened to Alex in a very long time.

Take 2 is Linda Bolton’s first release which debut on December 29 in ebook on Amazon. When she’s not writing she is a new GiGi, playing with her new granddaughter Z, working full-time and writing. While working on a future projects Linda can be found:

On Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/lindaboltonauthor

On Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/#!/lindalou42

Her romance blog at http://www.lindabolton.blogspot.com

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As someone who enjoys contemporary romances I am looking forward to this book, sounds different and very interesting. Besides, how many of us have fantasized about meeting our favourite actor and striking up a romance with him?

Welcome back to Anjie's corner and the TTC Virtual Blog tour. This week we got the opportunity to sit down with a fellow author and ask them a few questions. When I found out that I would be getting to interview the sultry Laci Page, I was doing the happy dance. As an aspiring erotica romance author I couldn't wait to get the fat and skinny out of this author. So we sat down with a cup of joe and a pen and paper and as she dished, I wrote. So here goes, all you wanted to know about Laci Page and her writing.

Welcome Laci

1. Can you tell us a little about yourself? Something that isn’t in your bio below.

My first love is the young adult paranormal romance genre. I’d never read anything erotic until a few years ago, and once I did I realized it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I found I actually enjoyed it.

2. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

Three short years ago. I put the words to a page as a personal challenge and I found out that it was something I enjoyed.

3. What is your life like when you are not writing?

I’m a wife and stay at home mother of two teens who keep me busy running “mom’s taxi”.

4. Are you published? Did you go self publish or tradition and why?

Yes, I am published. My debut erotic novella, “Let’s Keep On Truckin’” released a few short months ago. I chose to go with a small press publisher, Decadent Publishing. Self publishing the way I would want to (hiring cover artist and editors) would cost more than I could afford so I opted against it.

5. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

How my mind works amazes me. Once I got going, the ideas and characters just came to life, and I never knew I had that in me. That was my biggest surprise in all of this.

6. Who are some of your favorite Authors?

I don’t have favorites. I just enjoy the romance genre in general.

7. Laci Page is known for erotic romance, how did you choose that genre?

I read an erotic novella that I won in a contest, and loved it. After a couple of days of thinking about it, I said, “I think I could write stories like that.” And I did.

8. Do you think you could write other genres? And which ones?

Sure, I think I could. Some not as well as others. Contemporary and Paranormal would be the two that stick out in my mind, but I wouldn’t hold to just those. If my brain gets an idea I am going with it.

9. Laci Page is a nom de plume, why did you choose to write behind a pen name?

I’ve also had a young adult story published under my real name, and would not want my younger teenage fans to find the erotic stories and read them.

10. What does it take to make an erotic romance sizzle?

For me: It starts with an enticing cover, a catchy blurb, good editing (errors remove you from the scene), and a story that grabs you from the start. The characters should have an undeniable chemistry in and out of the bedroom.

11. Did you write query letters for your book? Is there any advice you could share on query letters for aspiring authors?

No. I didn’t write query letters. I actually contacted a publisher and sent an email for an open submission. I explained I was new to the writing world and wanted someone to take a look at my work to see if I was any good. After a couple of rejections/suggestions they accepted one of my stories.

12. If you could pick a celebrity to play one character in the movie version of your book, who would it be?

Unknowns. None of my characters remind me of anyone on the big screen right now.

13. What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

Any criticism is hard to swallow. Whether it’s good or bad. When the editors send my first round of edits, it’s always hard to swallow, but I keep telling myself I will improve over time. When I hear the good, “Wow, that was good. I didn’t know you could write like that.” I smile, but I’ve never been one to take compliments well. That’s just who I am. The best compliment is when someone says they couldn’t put my story down.

14. You work with a publisher, what is one of the toughest things to face when working with a publisher and one of the best parts of working with a publisher?

Everything is great working with my publisher. They take care of “behind the scenes” while I work with my editors to polish my stories. My publisher assigned a cover artist and I work with them to get a great cover based on my suggestions, meanwhile they assign me three editors (content, line and senior) who one by one go through my manuscript. They also format my book to put it on dozens of purchase sites, and issue review copies to reviewers. Decadent Publishing is a neat group of people who are always there for each other. The support there is unbelievable. The draw backs to a publisher is people need to get paid for their hard work, so I don’t get as much of a percentage off sales as I would if I self published.

15. There are different views to the topic that readers judge books on their covers. As an erotic writer what are your views on how a cover influences someone to buy or not buy a book.

Just from hanging around on facebook the old saying “you can’t judge a book by its cover” is so far from the truth when it comes to my genre. People LOVE cover art in the erotic/erotica world. The sexier the better. It seems to pull people toward certain books.

16. I am an erotica/romance aspiring author, presently editing my first novel, a lesfic romance, but mostly through my editing I keep telling myself that my writing is too boring, that no one would actually want to read it. What is one piece of advice that you would give me or any other aspiring author in my position with regard to my self-doubt and fears?

It’s very normal to feel that way. Even experienced long time authors have some self doubt sometimes. If this is something you really want to do, stick to your guns and pursue it. I would say to find a critique group or a few beta readers. Let them be the judge, and don’t use friends who might be afraid to hurt your feelings to get honest feedback. It’s scary to let people read your work, but isn’t that the goal in the end?

Thank you so much for hosting me today. You drafted up a great line of questions, and I enjoyed answering them! Good luck on your future ventures and with your writing!

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Blurb from “Let’s Keep On Truckin’” (By Laci Paige and Decadent Publishing, heat level 4).

Lily loves traveling on her job since no one can do it better than her. Being out on the open road gives her plenty of time to reflect and avoid unwanted attention, but somehow it always finds her....

When she comes across Ryder, first at a grocery store, then at a rest stop, sexual desire sparks and she knew she had to have him. If only her ex hadn't shown up, igniting a fantasy she never thought possible.

Seeing Alex in a whole new light, Lily realizes second chances are in order, but will she have to choose between the two men? Or could she be happy with both?

Excerpt:

In the candy aisle, I felt someone looking at me. Turning my head, I gazed past a man standing near me. A very nice looking man, but I ignored him, or at least I tried to. His green eyes locked on mine. Warmth and tingles spread throughout my body causing my knees to go weak. The man’s face held sharp features, and his sultry lips rewarded me with a demure smile. I would’ve loved to feel them on mine. He stepped closer to me. My heart rate spiked. Nodding to the shelf in front of us, he focused in on something and reached for it. He stopped mid-reach, and our gazes met again. His arm lowered. I knew I couldn’t look away, and I had a feeling he couldn’t either. I bit my bottom lip, and I saw him take notice. He leaned in close to me, mouth parted to speak.

“Excuse me,” a voice requested. We stepped away from each other so the woman behind us could retrieve candy from the shelf. She sure took her time. Separated by the woman, I kept glancing over at the man. He, too, continued to gaze my way. There was something about him; he made something stir inside me.

Available for purchase from: http://www.amazon.com/Lets-Keep-on-Truckin-ebook/dp/B00816ZX9S/ & http://www.decadentpublishing.com/product_info.php?products_id=540&osCsid=1okloom7mnbvupdk81i3741s21

Author Bio:

When Laci’s not reading or writing she can be found spending time with her husband supporting their children. Laci enjoys camping, hiking, & photography. And she loves to chat with fans on Twitter and Facebook. Laci and her family currently reside in Hampton Roads, VA. You can contact Laci Page at any of the following links:

http://lacipaige.blogspot.com/

https://twitter.com/#!/laci_paige

https://www.facebook.com/lacipaige

https://www.facebook.com/authorlacipaige

http://www.decadentpublishing.com/product_info.php?products_id=540&osCsid=28h21vnldsgfgbo3feevilqdj3