MEET THE AUTHOR: Linda Caroll-Bradd - "Bailing Wire Promises" - A Montana Key Kindle Worlds Novella

Bailing Wire Promises 

 Entertainers of the West #4

Today I'd like to welcome California Author Linda Carroll-Bradd with her novel, Bailing Wire Promises, Linda writes novels in both contemporary and historical settings with a sweet-to-sensual tone. Although she was born in northern California, she and her husband also spent three years in central Oregon early in their marriage before moving to southern California for her husband to attend college. Later, they also lived a dozen years in San Antonio, Texas before relocating to the southern California mountains in 2012.

What does she do to relax? In her words….
"My favorite relaxation comes when I’m lost in a good book that carries me away to another place and time--writing so good that I can turn off my editor brain and just enjoy. Especially if we have taken our mini-RV out for a weekend, away from being interrupted by tasks related to my husband’s job.”

                                  Let’s find out more about Linda:
Where do you start when writing? Research, plotting, outline, character, etc.?
The first thing I do is start building my characters. I have to know their names and ethnic backgrounds and the bare bones of the conflict. Then I dive into research. I want my historicals as accurate as I can make them and am fastidious about checking when certain items were invented and where, what stagecoach or train routes ran through a particular area, costs of everyday items, what the clothes were like, etc. because each of those details affects the plot. We live onsite where my husband works at a mountain resort camp and are 35 miles away from population centers in opposite directions. So to drive to get groceries (or any errand) takes 30 minutes, and when I travel with hubby, I read a lot of my research during those trips (sometimes aloud) to pass the time.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Getting the dialogue right for a time 130 to 150 years ago is tough. Even reading journals of the era don’t give a true sense, because most of us write more formally than we speak. This is a craft area I’m constantly tweaking.

What book(s) are you reading now?
I’m usually reading a writing craft book to improve my technique and strengthen my skills, as well as a research book. So the titles are: Creating Character Arcs by K.M. Weiland and The Legendary Appaloosa by Cheryl Dudley. But for pleasure, I just finished a medieval paranormal titled Faerie by Delle Jacobs that I adored. 
BLURB:Healer Fantine Pomeroy and five children, aged five to eleven years, are the only survivors of an orphanage fire. She vows to transport them safely to another orphanage, and then she can return to her music studies. But she soon discovers the task may be more than she can handle.

BLURB:
Bounty hunter Pete Andrews is beaten after delivering his last bounty. Unsure if robbery or retaliation is the motive, he sets out to lay low and make a visit to his brother in Morgan’s Crossing. Unable to leave them on their own, he promises to get the woman and children safely to the next town. When he suspects his old life has followed him and threatens the group who has become dear, he vows to protect them. But will that be enough?

                                               AUTHOR BIO:

As a young girl, Linda was often found lying on her bed reading about fascinating characters having exciting adventures in places far away and in other time periods. In later years, she read and then started writing romances and achieved her first publication--a confession story. Married with 4 adult children and 2 granddaughters, Linda now writes heartwarming contemporary and historical stories with a touch of humor and a bit of sass from her home in the southern California mountains.

Amazon buy link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XP61NY8
Website www.lindacarroll-bradd.com
Blog http://blog.lindacarroll-bradd.com
Twitter http://twitter.com/lcarrollbradd
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Linda-Carroll-Bradd-author/440814942635289
Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1806413.Linda_Carroll_Bradd
Newsletter signup URL from Mail Chimp  http://eepurl.com/bjKueH

FOUR WHITE ROSES - JUST RELEASED!

FINALLY IT'S RELEASED AND FOR SALE!

                   FOUR WHITE ROSES - $4.99

Can a wily old ghost help
two fractured souls find love again?

 

When widower Rich Redman returns to Pennsylvania with his young daughter to sell his deceased grandmother’s house, he discovers Grandmother Gertie’s final request was for him to find a missing relative and a stash of WWI jewels.

Torrie Larson, single mom, is trying to make her landscape center and flower arranging business succeed while attempting to save the lineage of a rare white rose brought from Austria in the 1900s.

Together, the rich Texas lawyer and poor landscape owner team up to rescue the last rose and fulfill a dead woman’s wishes. But in their search to discover answers to the mysteries plaguing them, will Rich and Torrie also discover love in each other’s arms? Or will a meddling ghost, a pompous banker, and an elusive stray cat get in their way?

 

 LINK:  

https://www.amazon.com/Four-White-Roses-Judy-Davis-ebook/dp/B06XPBKY7F

 

 And follow on the Goddess Fish Blog Tour 

from May 29th to June 9th to win a 

$25.00 Amazon Gift Certificate!

MEET THE AUTHOR: Diane Burton - The Case of the Meddling Mama

Please welcome Detroit-area author Diane Burton with her novel, The Case of the Meddling Mama, the third book in her "An Alex O'Hara Novel" series. She writes mysteries, science fiction romance, and romantic suspense. With a love for comedy, she always includes some humor in her stories along with the suspense. When she wants to relax, she likes to watch movies—romantic comedy, action/adventure, and science fiction—but without the creepy aliens!

Often people ask authors where do you start when writing? 

In her own words, Diane explains:  

 “An idea pops in my head, usually right before I fall asleep—a scene that comes out of nowhere. Or when I’m in a difficult spot in my work-in-progress. It’s so much more fun to write something new, fresh, exciting than a story that is giving me fits. So I don’t forget this powerful image, I’ll open a new file and write. Just for a few minutes. Then, I return to my WIP. When I’m ready to start a new project, I have plenty of ideas to choose from.”

I’m not a plotter. I like taking the idea and running with it. In my mind, I know where the story will go, a couple of key scenes, and the conclusion. Since the idea is fluid, and the characters have minds of their own (LOL), the story may change as I write. When I need info, I research on the fly. Too many times, though, the topic has interesting-sounding side links. Clicking on them is so easy, and before I know it, I forget that I should be writing instead of researching.

In The Case of the Meddling Mama, a secondary character thinks his buddy is involved with drugs. Since I know little about street drugs (just what I hear on TV and read in the newspaper), I hit several sites on drugs. I found it scary that messages kept popping up with offers of help for drug addiction. Though I amassed a tremendous amount of material, I could only use about ten percent, if that, and had to find places in the story where I could add that information without making it read like an info drop.

Here’s an excerpt that demonstrates what I mean. Alex is having dinner with friends. The husband is a teacher at the local high school.

“I have a question, Steve. It’s about drugs at the high school.”

For a moment, he looked startled, then his countenance turned dark. “You’d think in a small town like this we could keep out drugs and the dealers.” He cocked his head. “Have you heard something?”

Not wanting to betray Todd’s confidence, I hedged. “Just what was in the paper about the girl dying of an overdose.”

“Yeah, that was bad. The parents are in denial, of course. Considering what I know of Julie, I think it was accidental. She might have flirted with the drug then discovered the hard way she couldn’t tolerate it.” He shrugged. “When will kids realize they aren’t danger-proof?”

Laraine leaned over and patted his arm. “Weren’t we like that back then? Nothing could hurt us. We were invincible.”

“Is this some new kind of drug?” I asked.

“We’re seeing an increase in opioid addiction,” Steve said. “A parent, or grandparent, is prescribed an opioid for pain, and the kid sneaks a couple just to try it out. Likes the feeling and wants more. When that isn’t enough, they look for a dealer.”

Laraine looked at me earnestly. “My dad says something new is being sent to kids via the mail.” Being Far Haven’s police chief, her dad would know. “It was on the news a while back. It’s stronger than heroin and more deadly.”

“Pink.” Steve heaved a sigh. “We hope to God it doesn’t come here.”

“How do you stop this drug invasion?” I asked.

“Invasion. Good description.” Steve shook his head. “We help the kids with counseling, recommend rehab for them to the parents, and try to find the dealer. But if kids won’t give him or her up . . . our hands are tied.”

Blurb:

Once again, Alex O’Hara is up to her ears in mysteries. After surviving an attempted murder, all she wants is R&R time with Nick Palzetti. But his mother leaving his father (“that horse’s patoot”) and moving in with Alex puts a crimp in their plans. Then Nick leaves on assignment, and the teen she rescued from an abusive father believes his buddy is doing drugs. Meanwhile, Alex has two easy cases to take her mind off her shaky relationship with Nick—a philandering husband and a background check on a client’s boyfriend. Piece of cake.
 

The Case of the Meddling Mama: An Alex O’Hara Novel is available at:

Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ Barnes & Noble ~ iTunes ~ Smashwords

                                                            Author Bio:

Diane Burton combines her love of mystery, adventure, science fiction and romance into writing romantic fiction. Besides the science fiction romance Switched and Outer Rim series, she is the author of One Red Shoe, a romantic suspense, and the Alex O’Hara PI mystery series. Diane and her husband live in West Michigan. They have two children and three grandchildren.

Diane’s website: http://www.dianeburton.com

Blog:  http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/dmburton72

Facebook:  http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthor

Goodreads: Diane Burton Author

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/dmburton72/

Sign up for Diane’s new release alert: http://eepurl.com/bdHtYf

  

Visit Judy on Diane’s blog at:  http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/2017/05/blog-swap-with-judy-ann-davis-new.html

MEET THE AUTHOR: Maureen Bonatch - "Destiny Calling"

I'm happy to introduce a fellow Pennsylvania author, Maureen Bonatch, who hails from a small town in Western Pennsylvania. She writes humorous paranormal romance and fantasy. When not pounding the computer keys, Maureen likes to relax by watching a movie...or yes, writing!

What is her favorite time of the day for writing? In her own words.....
"My favorite time of the day for writing is before the day officially begins. The time between night and dawn when I can quietly consider the mysteries of the night while capturing the hope of a new day. The paranormal and the possibilities of the extraordinary are more certain when I can almost tap into dreams as the world peacefully slumbers."

Blurb:
When the woman who raised Hope is murdered by something not human, Hope loses the only family she knows and discovers one she might wish she never met. With a touch that can make the desperate hopeful, Hope is the answer. The only question is if she can deal with sibling rivalry, accept that entities feeding off despair exist, and determine if Griffith is the man of her dreams, or not at all what he seems. 

Excerpt:

I strained to release my arm from Griffith’s vise-like grip while scanning the surrounding trees, trying to determine which was less of a threat, the beast of a man holding me or those who might be waiting for me in the woods.

“You will come inside, now.” Griffith spoke slowly and deliberately as if I were a small child.

I batted at the hand Griffith placed on my head. “I’m not a puppy, quit petting me.”

“I will protect you.” Griffith’s warm breath caressed my ear. “If for no other reason, to find out what I’m giving up and why she wants you so badly.”

I inhaled his masculine scent, like musky earth. It washed over my face, and the tension in my jaw released. I stopped struggling. “Are you the devil?” My tongue was thick and heavy so the words came out slurred.

“Not even close.” His words soothed and comforted, like having a weighted blanket cocoon me. Each movement was an effort. It wasn’t the same as the thing in the woods. This was more like the feeling after a long massage or bubble bath.

“It’s not safe.” Griffith wrapped his arms around me, and I rested against his broad chest.

“It’s not safe.” I nodded. My muscles relaxed and my eyelids grew heavy.

“It’s cold. We’re going inside.” Griffith kept his arm supporting me as he steered me toward the house.

“We’re going inside.” I parroted and walked up the steps, leaning heavily on him.

Out of the corner of my eye, something was cautiously moving at the edge of the woods. Branches snapped as whatever was observing us crept closer. 

Buy Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Calling-Enchantlings-Book-1-ebook/dp/B00Q3OB85I/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1493731505&sr=8-3&keywords=maureen+l+bonatch

The Wild Rose Press: http://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/paperback-books/927-destiny-calling-paperback.html?search_query=maureen+bonatch&results=6

I-Tunes:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/destiny-calling/id952889700?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D8

Author Links:
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Maureen-L.-Bonatch/e/B00KHY1KK8/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mbonatch
Website: http://www.maureenbonatch.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maureenlbonatch
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3103486.Maureen_L_Bonatch  

Author Bio:  

Maureen Bonatch grew up in small town Pennsylvania and her love of the four seasons—hockey, biking, sweat pants and hibernation—keeps her there. While immersed in writing or reading paranormal romance and fantasy, she survives on caffeine, wine, music, and laughter. A feisty Shih Tzu keeps her in line.