Blog Hop - My Work In Progress

I would like to thank Marie Lavender, author and blogger extraordinaire, for tagging me in her blog hop: What's Your Next Big Thing?

I read her book Upon Your Honor and absolutely loved it. (To read my review, follow this link: http://bit.ly/1Nvbx0d)

She is currently working Upon Your Love,  part of the Heiresses in Love Series, a Victorian romance series with some suspense. "Spurred from the first book, Upon Your Return, it all started with a woman who gets into a bit of trouble on the docks in La Rochelle, France. Hmm…my heroines in that series always seem to encounter trouble of one kind or another. The scene for the first book just came to me, and I didn’t question why Fara’s story had to be told. And I guess I’m still telling it, though each book is centered on a new set of characters. The ideas for the sequels came to me shortly after I received a contract for the first book. Suddenly, I knew the story wasn’t over, that other characters needed their say." - Marie Lavender http://marielavender.com

Marie's Questions for Me!

1. What is your working title of your book (or story)?

The title of my work in progress is Marian’s Misguided, The Accidental Roadie. This is Book Three in The Accidental Series.

2. Where did the idea come from for these books?

Way back in 2008 I wrote Charlotte’s Restrained, The Accidental Stalker. The book is based upon what happens when Charlotte gets to meet her celeb crush. I’m a vagabond at heart and could spend my life travelling. I am also blessed with many wonderful friends. So, rather than write about damsels in distress, I write books where the reader travels to real places, with a group of five vivacious, can-do women.
 

One of them is Irishwoman, Marian Conolly. She’s sarcastic, witty, up for anything – but she is also ready for the next chapter in her life to begin. She’s a successful lawyer, but now… she wants to have more in her personal life. I promise a great read filled with laughter.

3. What genre do your books fall under?

Tough one – technically I would called them Contemporary Romance, but I endeavor to explore some of lifes harder moments also. So, there is laughter, romance, travel… but expect a twist.

4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I’ve created a Pinterest Board for Charlotte’s Restrained, this is the link: http://bit.ly/1Ck4mVx. I cast actress Sarah Parish as Marian. This series has a huge cast of characters, a new male character, Declan has already be fleshed out. I would cast British Actor, James Murray for him. It’s early days, so I haven’t figured out all the who’s and why’s, but another handsome hunk will arrive on the scene. Who knows who will be the one?  (Coincidentally, Sarah Parish and James Murray are married in real life.)

 

5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

She’s bold, brash, and brazen, and taking to the open road to find out which path to take.

6. Will your book(s) be self-published or represented by an agency?

I am a self-published author. I’m not sure that defines me as an Indie Author. I’m still trying to understand the difference.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I’ve only been working on it a month, but I expect to be done by December. Nine months to a year seems to be my normal time frame.

8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

The whole series has been compared to Sex in the City or Nottinghill, by reviewers. I know they aren’t books, but the TV series and movie get awfully close.

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?

The first book in the series, Charlotte’s Restrained, The Accidental Stalker, was inspired by an interview on Inside the Actors Studio, Clint Eastwood was the guest. My husband and I were amazed by how diverse his skills and interests are and we got to talking about how great it would be to have dinner with him… but how does one go about making contact, becoming friends with, a celebrity?

Kathleen’s Undressed, The Accidental Enigma, was inspired by the character, Kathleen, herself (when I wrote Charlotte Restrained). When I re-read the first book I realized that Kathleen went fairly undeveloped, which lead me to wonder why. From that I created this contained enigma who is complex, but still fits into the quirky world of high styling, living life large, group of women.

Marian’s role in both books is to lighten the mood, but she’s also very clear that she is look for love… if not someone to lust after. Her book is exactly that – the unifying of lust and love and her bold move to find it.
 

Thank you to Lois W. Stern who tagged Marie Lavender. If I am lucky she will add me to her AUTHORS’ HALL OF FAME (the first ten authors who complete the above instructions, post their interview questions/answers on their blog, and add her information to their AUTHORS’ HALL OF FAME linking her name and image to http://tales2inspire.com/?p=1617. E-mail her @ Tales2Inspire@optimum.net).

 

My turn to nominate! Ladies, all you need to do is follow my lead. Answer the questions I did, add Lois and my links, then nominate five people you know!

S.E. Babin has a passion for writing books with a paranormal twist. Whether it’s romance or mystery, she loves taking the norm and turning it into the extraordinary. Her love of reading turned into a curious exploration to see whether or not she could write her own novel. Beginning with random, terrible poetry and a slightly popular reimagining of Beowulf’s Grendel in her high school English class, Sheryl spent way too much time in the library, killing any chance of her becoming a cheerleader or anything even remotely cool.

Laurie Baxter has degrees in both puppetry and screenwriting because let’s face it, majoring in English would have been no more useful and way less fun. She loves chocolate, ice cream, chocolate ice cream, dogs, New York City, old movies, modern architecture, all kinds of theater, and music from before she was born. Her eighth grade English teacher told her to become a writer, so she did.

 

Engy Albasel Neville is a working mom, a brand consultant professional with 15 years experience managing brand initiatives for fortune 500 companies, a certified yoga teacher and an aspiring amateur chef.

Her favorite hobbies include traveling, gardening, cooking and writing with the latter more of a calling than hobby. She’s also a self proclaimed bookworm.

 

Engy lives with her husband, two active toddlers and super hyper dog on Long Island, New York.

 

Amy Gettinger lives in Orange County, California with her husband and her two piteous poodles under the shade of a very old eucalyptus windrow full of crows and wild parrots. When she’s not writing novels, she’s creating Reader’s Theater plays and coaching a local senior group to perform them, complete with feather boas and tiaras.

 

While attending the University of Illinois in Chicago, Whitney Dineen was discovered by a local modeling agent and began an unexpected career as a plus-size Ford model. She modeled in New York City before moving to Los Angeles with her husband. During “The Hollywood Years,” Whitney was bitten by the writing bug and started creating characters that are inspired by strong women with a great sense of humor. She is the author of the best-selling romantic comedy, She Sins at Midnight. Her second book, The Reinvention of Mimi Finnegan, is due out in May, 2015.  In addition to writing romantic comedies, Whitney has also created a series of adventure books for girls. The first of which, Wilhelmina and the Willamette Wig Factory, will be released in the autumn of 2015. Whitney and her husband live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest where they raise their children, chickens and organic vegetables.

Connie Stephany is a self-published author, whose first book, Second Chances, was published in December of 2014. 

She has been reading romance novels her entire life, and decided to try her hand at writing one!  Although it took several years between writing her first book and publishing, her second book will be (hopefully) much faster to market and is plotting it out now.

Connie lives in Zimmerman, Minnesota with her husband of 15 years, 3 children who are 14, 13 and 8 and a dog named Millie.

Connie’s dream is to become a famous author one day, where she can write books people cannot wait to read.

 

Suzie Jay is a mum of six who lives in Australia with her delicious husband and band of little misfits. She is a former school teacher who escaped to torture the world by sharing what’s inside her head. This is her first published work and it will be followed closely by her debut novel: Walk on the wild Side. The reinvention of Violet Monte which will be out in May of 2015.