Interview with Mary Alice Pritchard

Mary Alice Pritchard is here today tell us about her fascinating Cat Series. If you love shapeshifters, you'll fall in love with her hunky heroes and feisty heroines. Find out what Mary's favorite reference book is. It's quite chilling.

***Contest: Anyone who leaves a comment on the blog will be entered to win a book package of several books.

Why don’t you start with telling us a little about yourself? What genre do you write and why? I’m a nurse and a writer. I love reading, writing and spending time with my muses (cats). I also like to garden and travel. My favorite genres to write are paranormal and romantic suspense. I usually write them together. I just love shapeshifters and mysteries.

Leopard Dreams is the second book in your Cat Series. What is the first book?

Jaguar Nights is the first book in the series.

How many books do you have planned for the series and what big cat is next on your list? I have one more planned, but if the readers want more….

Do we need to read the books in order or are they stand alone stories? It would help to read them in order, but they are stand alone as well.

Tell us about Zack, your hero in Leopard Dreams. He’s a were-jaguar who believes he’s found his true mate in Kristen, who happens to be a were-leopard. How does he know? Is it by sight? Smell? His heart beating faster? Give us the back story on how a were recognizes his true mate. Zack is first enforcer of the king. He longs for a mate and when he finds Kristen, he knows she is his mate. He feels the tug in his soul. A were knows by a drawing they feel to their mate.

Tell us about your heroine, Kristen. What is her first impression of Zack? Does she realize Zack is her true mate?

Kristen is a were-leopard. She has been through hell at the hands of another were-jaguar as a young adult and is scared of Zack while at the same time, she is attracted to him. She realizes that he is her true mate but fights it.

Do you use pictures to help inspire you when you write?

Sometimes I will pick out a picture of a hunk to inspire me on my descriptions of the men, but not as much as a lot of writers who use what we call, hunk boards. J

What is your favorite reference book and why?

Oh that is a hard one. I love books of every kind. I have one called The Serial Killer Files by Harold Schechter that I love reading through. I love writing suspense and pretty much every book I write has some in it.

What are your current projects and works in progress?

I’m writing a series of erotica books. The first one is about a young woman being stalked. She has to rely on her next door neighbor and his friends to keep her safe.

Tell the readers where they can find you: My web site is: www.maryalicepritchard.com my blog is: www.maryalicepritchard.com/blog

Is there anything else you’d like to tell the readers?

I hope

you will read my books and let me know how you feel about them. What did you like and what did you not like as much. I want to write what you want to read. J

Blurb Leopard Dreams: Zack, a weirjaguar and first to the king of the southern pride, knows he has found his mate, but is she part of the experiments the humans are performing on the weir. How can he pursue their mating until he knows she is innocent. Will he have to fight his best friend and the king over her?

Kiersten is a weirleopard searching for her brother. She refuses to acknowledge Zack as her mate. She doesn't want a mate and especially not a jaguar. Will she learn to trust Zack or will she run to escape her past?

Excerpt: The minute Kristen stepped through the trees with her clothes in her arms, she screamed at Zack. Then she ran for the house, intent on locking him out. He seemed to know what she planned to do because he was there holding the door when she tried to jerk it open.

“I’m not letting you shut me out, Kristen, so get used to it.”

“I don’t have to get used to anything. There is nothing between us.”

“Our cats have other ideas, little leopard.”

“Don’t call me that. I hate it.”

She stormed into the house when he finally let her open the door. She couldn’t slam it in his face, but she could damn well slam her bedroom door and she did. It didn’t give her any satisfaction when he just opened it and leaned against the doorway as if nothing was wrong.

“I like the sound of it. It fits you though I would have thought you a tiger by the way you act.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You’re feisty and turn on someone faster than a leopard would. I think that’s what intrigues me more than anything. How fast you go from curiosity to full-out rage and back to a cool calm. I never know what to expect and it’s exciting as hell to wait and see what you’ll throw at me.”

She couldn’t think of a retort. He caught her off guard. Legs shaking, she ran her hands through her sweaty hair. After looking once more at him, she resigned herself to sharing the bathtub again. He’d just join her once she got in anyway.

“I need a bath. Since I know you’ll ignore me if I tell you to keep out, make yourself useful and run the water.

Mary's blog site is www.maryalicepritchard.com/blog/

Anyone who leaves a comment her blog will be entered to win a book package of several books.

To be or Not to be an Indie-Author

Rebecca J. Vickery is the author of Surviving with Love, Laser's nominee for Best book of 2009. She's here to share her adventures with Indie Publishing and how she launched her own publishing company. Meet the authors she's published and learn about the new books planned for 2010 and 2011. Let's give Rebecca a warm welcome.

*Contest: win four books. Read on and find out how.

Hi Karen and Everyone,

Thank you so much for inviting us to blog with you today. I’m Rebecca J. Vickery and I’ve brought authors, Laurean Brooks, Diane Craver, and Kinzie Monroe, to join us, And of course, Karen Michelle Nutt, who is already here as she issued the invitation.

I am an Indie-Author and truly love the experience. It provides me the freedom to choose my distributors, editors, cover artists, release dates, and also to set my own pricing (within limits of the distributors). I choose whether or not to go to print and I have total creative freedom over my work, plus my royalties are higher. Though it’s not for everyone, for me it is a win/win situation. I’ve also found some inexpensive ways to publish quality books, so it’s not as expensive as you might be led to believe.

My latest venture, after talking with other authors who would love to dabble their feet in the Indie pool, but don’t want to leap off the cliff like I did, was to begin helping those authors. For a small percentage of their future royalties for a designated period of time, we collaborate on the formatting and set-up, where they want their book to go, covers, pricing, and whatever else they need to get that book Indie-Published. In no time, they are also Indie Authors.

Our new website is under construction for Publishing by Rebecca J. Vickery.

http://www.rebeccajvickery.com

I hope you’ll visit us there when it’s up and running.

To date, the authors I’ve worked with are also part of Victory Tales Press, dedicated to publishing quality romance anthologies. We’ve released two anthologies so far, Bloodmaiden: A Fantasy Anthology (http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/12805) and A Summer Collection (http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/14519), with plans for a minimum of 16 more in 2010 and 2011. My hubby says I don’t do anything half-way. LOL

If you’d like to learn more about Victory Tales Press, please visit our forum-style site at: http://victorytalespress.lefora.com

We’ll also devote a section of our new website to Victory Tales Press once it’s completed. I always have to thank the talented, Laura Shinn, (www.laurashinn.com) for being my supporter, advisor, cover artist, and sometimes editor throughout all my projects.

***Drawing: One lucky name drawn from the comments we receive will win four free reads. One of each of the books by our talented authors below will be included in the prize. If you post as anonymous or as a guest, please make sure we have an email address to contact you should you win.

Let’s talk Books and Authors!

Rebecca: Laurean Brooks and I find that we are soul-sisters and have so much in common it’s scary. We clicked right off and when I read Jonquils in the Snow, I loved the emotion, the characters, and the presentation. Such a lot packed into a quick read. Laurean allowed me the pleasure of working with her to get this short story published.

Laurean: Jonquils in the Snow by Laurean Brooks is an inspiring story of renewed hope after loss and the ability to heal through God's love.

Miranda Stevens' fiance skipped town two days before their wedding. Bitterness fills her heart. She carries the bitterness until a handsome, blond man with honey-gold eyes knocks on her door after a disastrous ice storm. The gentle man's demeanor draws her like a magnet. Miranda recognizes grief in his eyes, but what caused the pain?

Brady Watson's anger toward the drunk driver responsible for his wife's death, has morphed into grief three years later. How can he get past it? Is he willing to let go?

Miranda determines to instill hope and a desire for a new beginning, in Brady's heart. Is her love strong enough to penetrate his hurting soul? Will God's answer be found in a cluster of jonquils bursting through the snow?

Reflecting on the previous year's crippling ice storm that brought a week of power outages, spurred me to ask, what if the storm broke huge limbs, scattering them across a young woman's lawn? What if she calls a tree service to remove them? And what if the owner of the tree service helps Miranda see how anger has stolen two years of her life?

Jonquils in the Snow was birthed from these musings. When I related the story in progress to author, Miss Mae, in January, 2010, she contacted Rebecca J. Vickery to post it on SmashWords. I had not even heard of SmashWords. But the more I heard about them, the more enthused I became. I finished the story the last week of January and Rebecca promptly posted it on Feburary 1, 2010. I can't thank her enough. Clicking over the site to check on the viewing statistics and downloads thrills me.

Then when Rebecca told me about Operation Ebook for deployed troops, I signed up. Several troops have taken advantage of the free download. I am proud to be part of a wonderful effort to bring these dedicated soldiers a taste of home, while entertaining them with encouraging stories.

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/9341

http://www.amazon.com/Jonquils-in-the-Snow-ebook/dp/B003GIRPYW/

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Jonquils-in-the-Snow/Laurean-Brooks/e/2940000821114/

http://www.laureanslore.blogspot.com/

Rebecca : D. S. Craver (better known to most of you as Diane Craver) came to me with questions about a highly sensual novella she was working on. After talking, we decided Smashwords would be the perfect choice for publication and distribution.

Your Place or Mine contains tastefully complete love scenes and is a mix of humor, true-to-life situations, and emotional ups and downs. Diane takes home buying to a whole new level. This is a “For Adults Only” read.

Diane: Marianne Arkins encouraged me to write a novella, so last spring I decided to take her advice and I wrote Your Place or Mine. It's a contemporary romance with two fun characters, Blake Smith and Sydney Smith. They are both determined to buy the same duplex. I had a blast writing it. The idea popped into my head to have two complete strangers show up at the same time to see a house. A mistake occurred in scheduling because they happen to have the same last name. Sparks instantly fly between the Mr. Hottie Engineer and the gorgeous newspaper columnist. I had real estate on my brain because we were actively looking for a ranch to buy.

Although I was offered a contract for this novella from another publisher, I decided to submit to Rebecca instead. I'm glad I did because she's great to work with. I'm also quite pleased with the cover Laura Shinn and Rebecca designed for Your Place or Mine.

Sydney Smith decides it’s time to move out of her tiny apartment and become a home owner. Blake Smith, no relation and a real hottie, also wants to see the duplex. A mix-up has them viewing it together. They both love the house. There's also some sparks flying between the two of them, or is Sydney the only one feeling that way? A highly sensual story of fun, home-buying, and more...

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/18253

http://www.amazon.com/Your-Place-or-Mine-ebook/dp/B003UV8ZHQ/

http://www.lulu.com/product/ebook/your-place-or-mine/11722097

http://www.dianecraver.com/

Rebecca : Inspirational Author, Kinzie Monroe (many of you know her as Suspense author, Anne Patrick) recently sent No Greater Love to me for consideration after we discussed the premise and that it was one of those “hard to place” manuscripts. I was swept away by the sad, but inspirational story of this young woman’s life and death, and by Kinzie/Anne’s style and talent as a writer. I knew this story needed to be out there for others to enjoy. It touched my heart and had me laughing in some spots and crying in others. It’s a story which stays with the reader long after the last page.

Kinzie: No Greater Love is a unique book that has it all: romance, drama, salvation, and sacrifice. It gives a whole new meaning to what it means to lay down one’s life for a friend. Leah Dalton has been handed a death sentence in the form of a deadly brain tumor. Fearing a painful death, she comes up with a plan to end her life on her terms. Attorney Kirby Shelton reluctantly joins Leah on her journey and faces decisions that can and will change her life forever. Kirby’s life isn’t the only one about to be changed—five of Leah’s closest friends have been included in Leah’s plan to end her life. Will one of them risk their future and freedom for three hundred million dollars?

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/18418

http://www.amazon.com/No-Greater-Love-ebook/dp/B003V4B36M/

http://www.lulu.com/product/ebook/no-greater-love/11722142

http://www.kinziemonroe.blogspot.com/

Rebecca: I was very happy when Karen Michelle Nutt began asking me questions about Indie-Publishing and gave me a chance to read her first manuscript in a new series she’s writing. Eli: Warriors for the Light captured my interest and my imagination. Sexy Fallen Angels, a spunky heroine, and undying love always grab me. But then she tossed in facts from the Book of Enoch (from the Dead Sea Scrolls) and a dash of time travel and this was a have to publish story. I think readers will be very pleased with the results.

Karen: Rebecca is wonderful to work with and answered my million questions. Indie-publishing his still new to me, but I look forward to learning more. The Warriors for the Light are a group of Fallen Angels determined to save their souls even if it means breaking all the rules. Eli’s story is the first book in the series.

Eli: Warriors for the Light: At a very young age the Rules of Conduct for the Fallen Angels were drummed into Eli Grigori’s head. He managed to break all of them. He falls in love with Ryden O'Sullivan, a human, his soul mate. Hashasheen demons, assassins for hire are sent to take out Eli and Ryden. With his wings bound and his magic gone, can Eli protect his love? Will any of it matter to the Watchers?

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/18441

http://www.amazon.com/Eli-Warriors-Light-ebook/dp/B003V4B48O/

http://www.lulu.com/product/ebook/eli-warriors-for-the-light/11722151

http://www.kmnbooks.com/

Thank you for joining us.

You can contact me with questions anytime at: booksbyrebecca@yahoo.com

Interview with Ashlynn Monroe

Ashlynn Monroe, the author of paranormal romances and urban fantasies is here today to tell us about her upcoming release Chemical Lust!

Her heroine, Leah is a scientist, who has developed a chemical that stimulates sexual lust and it's been released into the air. Find out how her heroine and hero, Leah and Jericho handle the situation. What would you do if such a chemical was released or what wouldn't you do?

Tell us-- if you dare to share. (Please keep it PG 13-- Enticing with just enough suspense is all we need to start the imagination. (lol ) If you don't want to share your fantasy, just say hello or ask a question. Ashlynn would love to hear from you.

Why don’t you start with telling us a little about yourself? What genre do you write and why?

I started to write when I was thirteen but I’d been making up stories to entertain my friends long before that. I love to write it’s just something that gives me an escape. I write contemporary, science fiction, paranormal and urban fantasy romance. I am too random to stick to one genre and I just write whatever my characters tell me to write.

Your upcoming release, Chemical Lust is available on July 9^th at Cobblestone Press. Tell us about the heroine, Leah. What is she like? What does she do for a living? Does she have an idea man in mind and does Jericho fit that profile?

Leah is very proud of her military career. She thinks she is plain. As most women tend to do, she feels insecure about her sex appeal. When she meets Jericho, she isn’t looking for love or romance. She has been developing a chemical for the government that stimulates sexual lust and so thinking about sex has been a job requirement, her attraction to someone she shouldn’t fraternize with complicates her mission greatly.

The hero in your story is Jericho. Tell us a little about him. (It’s okay if you make us drool. Kleenex is available. Lol) what is his impression of Leah after meeting her for the first time?

Jericho is your typical drop dead gorgeous out of my league stud muffin. He looks like a pin up calendar boy but has a sexy brain too. He is the kind of guy you want to rip clothing off and after having your way with him discuss politics and books ROFL! He is a civilian and has a bit of issue with Leah’s need to follow orders even when he feels they are morally wrong. He has no idea that Leah is doing her best to balance being a good solider with making the right choices. They start things off backwards really because of an inadvertent lab accident and so he has his hands full making her see that he is attracted to her beyond just biology.

Do you use pictures to help inspire you when you write?

No, music makes my muse work best.

What is your favorite reference book and why?

I love the good old internet…Thank the lord for Wikipedia.

I love Wikipedia, too! :)

Like so many of us, we juggle day jobs, family life and our obsession to write. Tell us your secret to managing all three.

Lack of sleep is the only secret I have. I have two elementary school aged children and a hubby and I work full time with a long commute to a different city. I will often leave myself voice notes on my BlackBerry as I drive and get a flash of inspiration.

What are your current projects and works in progress?

I have a Templar vampire series with Keith Publications that I hope will be as exciting to readers as it is to write. I am also working on a steam punk novel that is so much fun! Think Texas during the civil war, mobsters, AK-47s, computers, train robbers, and three ex-nun sisters who kick ass in miniskirts, this one is a challenge but I am loving it.

Both sound intriguing!

Tell the readers where they can find you:

ashlynnmonroe.webs.com/

wickedmuses.webs.com/

facebook

Twitter: ashlynn_monroe

Is there anything else you’d like to tell the readers?

I love this story it’s a quick hot read about not selling yourself short. The hottie you are lusting after might just feel the same way. Everyone has that one guy at work or wherever that they want to see naked, he might just want to see them naked too!

Blurb: Leah is a military scientist working on a top-secret project. Jericho, civilian consultant makes her think some very non-scientific thoughts! They have to develop lust in a bottle, but when Leah looks at Jericho; her lust is definitely not staying in the bottle. An accident shows them just how well their lust in the bottle works and Leah discovers that Jericho looks just as good with his clothes off! However, when the lust wears off Leah wonders if the chemistry was real or synthetic? Could a guy like Jericho still want her without chemical lust?

Excerpt: Jericho bent over to pick up the vials; Leah could not resist a glance at his perfect derrière. His body was so perfect it put Michelangelo’s David to shame! She tried to swallow and noticed her throat had suddenly gotten very dry. Jericho opened the parcel to inspect the precious and potent cargo.

“Leah, oh God, cover your nose!” Jericho’s alarm brought her to full attention.

She noticed that both of the vials had cracked, and as the two chemicals came together, she could see them mixing and forming the most potent version of Potion Number Nine. If they did not plug the cracks and stop the reaction, they were about to become the human test subjects!

Jericho must have come to the same conclusion as she did, because he was trying to plug the cracks with his large fingers. In his fear and panic, however, he put too much pressure on the vials. They shattered completely. The blushing fumes began to rise. Jericho dropped all of it now and quickly removed his shirt. He tied it around his face to protect himself from inhaling the fumes.

Leah took control, throwing her jacket over the mess in hopes that it would not penetrate the thick fabric. Unfortunately, her efforts didn’t seem to be helping. She frantically jabbed at the emergency button and began to call for help. The chemical lust was making her choke and cough as her lungs filled with the oddly floral-smelling gas. She grabbed her BlackBerry and tried to dial. She cussed loudly, which was very out of character for her. There was no signal—the building was constructed of very durable materials, and in the elevator no one had ever gotten a signal. Leah wanted to scream when she realized just how screwed she was.

Because of the previous emergency, no one was responding to their call; security probably assumed they were just getting impatient for their elevator to move again. Leah tried to cover her mouth and nose, but it was too late. She was already feeling lightheaded, the first sign that the drug was taking hold of her.

Jericho seemed to be fairing no better than she was, even with his makeshift mask. His pupils dilated; she assumed hers were as well. No matter what, she was still the scientist, so she began to mentally compile her data on their reaction. If they lived, she would have much to say about the effectiveness of the drug, as she was now experiencing it firsthand with her knowledge of its structure and of how the human body would metabolize it.

Jericho stumbled and dropped to the floor. His large frame made the elevator shake, but it still had not moved.

Leah also lost her strength and sank down next to him. The gas was starting to dissipate, and they were still alive. For one moment of relief, she was sure that the gas was having no effect on her—and then it happened. Raging fire shot through her body, and she gasped for air. Her head fell back as her back arched. She felt as if she was on the brink of an orgasm right there, fully dressed and untouched on the elevator floor. Her keen awareness of Jericho’s eyes on her and the fact he was watching with interest, not saying or doing anything, made it all the more embarrassing and yet kind of kinky. Leah actually shook her head to try and clear that thought away.

I am a scientist, and this is a perfectly uncontrollable reaction to a laboratory mishap, she reassured herself. I am in no way responsible for my actions, she thought as if pleading with her own subconscious. Before she completely gave in to her loss of control, she managed to grab her jacket off the floor and flip it up to where the security camera was pointing directly at her. She did not want even more of an audience for her panting and writhing; it was bad enough that Jericho seemed to be completely aware of her predicament and enjoying it thoroughly. It made her hot just knowing he was the one seeing her need. She wanted him between her legs. She wanted him to f— her right there on the elevator floor—an elevator that could start working any second, she reminded herself.

Jericho’s perfect lips made her want to kiss him more than she’d thought it possible to want to kiss anyone. She was never the sexual aggressor in a relationship, but she suddenly wanted to pin him to the floor and remove his clothing until nothing but skin was rubbing together in delicious friction.

Whoa! Where had that come from? She wondered, trying to get herself under control. She was career military and damn proud of it; Leah was one tough lady who had always prided herself on her control and her commitment to the job. She tried to breathe and quell her raging lust, but the panting and gulping for air only made her think of how nice it would be to make Jericho pant with need for her. Even if she was plain, there were things she could do with her tongue that would make him scream hallelujah. She wondered how his sexy voice would sound calling her name, begging her to wring the pleasure out of him. Leah moaned and smacked her head against the elevator wall as she battled against the need. She wanted to yell at him. He looked so comfortable! How was that crap not affecting him? He seemed totally in control, and it was making her crazy.

She turned on her side, rolling on her arms and pinning them down to keep herself from touching him or herself, so intense was her arousal. She glared at him. He was still lying on the floor, but he had his head propped up on his arm and was watching her with a bored interest that made her want to slap him just to wipe that smirk off his perfect face. Control was officially gone; she had turned feral in her lust.