The Shadow of Mudflap by Christi Snow & M.F. Smith

 

 

All the proceeds from the sale of this book will go to the Lubbock Red Cross.

 

Blurb

To us, first responders are heroes. But for them, risking their lives is a normal, everyday thing.


Mudflap:
Born the baby of the family, Mudflap has always had something to prove to emerge out of the shadows of his older siblings. He spent eight years as a Special Ops elite sniper and is now a firefighter. But at his heart, he’s just a normal West Texas good old boy who loves his beer, women and football, until the Department of Defense calls him up to say they need his skills again.


Shanae:
Shanae is a first responder of a different sort. She’s a trauma nurse who works on a medical evacuation helicopter team. But while she lives a life full of adrenaline every day, it’s just a cover for her real life, where she hides in the shadows and is secret agent, Shadowfox for the Lubbock Foxtrot Team (LiFT). She’s living the kind of life that most people think exists only in movies and books.

Working for two different branches of the government, Mudflap and Shanae are in a race against time and the terrorists who threaten the very heart of West Texas life, football. They’re working toward the same goal, but find themselves in a confrontation against each other and the lies they’ve each had to hide behind. Can love win out in the end or will the cost be each other and their very lives?

First responders are heroes every day, but this story tells the tale of when they become even more and find love along the way. The key is for them to stay alive so that they can complete their mission and just maybe live happily ever after.

On an ordinary day, they save lives. On an extraordinary day, they save the country.
Link to Follow the Tour: http://tastybooktours.blogspot.com/2013/06/now-booking-tasty-virtual-book-tour-for.html

Excerpt

Because everything about this book is set around a college football season, the book is broken down a bit differently than your normal book usually is done. Instead of chapters, there are weeks (i.e. the weeks of the football season) and there are also sections called Halftime Texting. These feature flirty little exchanges of texts between the hero, Mudflap, and the heroine, Shanae. The following is my favorite Halftime Texting section from the book…

Halftime Texting

Shanae: I have two cookies: one is a snickerdoodle, one is a chocolate chip.

Mudflap: Okay, that’s just mean when I haven’t eaten lunch yet.

Shanae: It’s a test. If I offer you one, which one do you take?

Mudflap: You’re testing me?

Shanae: Yes, now answer the question.

Mudflap: I’d take the snickerdoodle.

Shanae: Good answer, but why?

Mudflap: I have sisters. I know better than to get between a girl and her chocolate.

Mudflap: Did I pass?

Shanae: With flying colors.

Pause…

Mudflap: You weren’t just teasing about the cookies, right? I really am hungry.

Buy Links

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Trailer: http://youtu.be/KtJQvEEkzEA

Author Info

Christi Snow

As an avid reader her entire life, Christi Snow always dreamed of writing books that brought to others the kind of joy she felt when she read. But...she never did anything about it besides jot down a few ideas and sparse scenes.

When she turned 41, she decided it was time to go after her dream and started writing. Within four months, she'd written over 150,000 words and hasn't stopped since.

She's found her calling by writing about sexy, alpha heroes and smart, tough heroines falling in love and finding their passion. She's truly living the dream and loving every minute of it.

Her tagline is... Passion and adventure on the road to Happily Ever After. She's loving this adventure!
www.christi-snow.com

http://smittenwithreading.blogspot.com (book review blog)

https://www.facebook.com/christisnowauthor?ref=hl

https://twitter.com/ChristiSnow

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5849322.Christi_Snow

M.F. Smith

 Mudflap is a morning show personality for 96.3 KLLL in Lubbock, TX. He’s been on the morning show for seven years and in radio for over ten years. He’s entertained people all over the world, and has helped raise money for many non-profit agencies and charities.

Mudflap loves to see people smile and believes everyone deserves a hug.
KLLL radio station website

Guest Post

 

 

As I started this project, this was the thing I heard over and over again. Mudflap?? That’s the hero’s name?

 

BUT there was a very good reason behind the name. I promise. In real life, Mudflap (or M.F. Smith) is a radio personality in Lubbock, Texas, and this entire project started out as his baby. Originally, it was really just supposed to be a bit for his radio show, but as we talked more and more about it, we realized this could be a really viable and fun idea to pursue.

The two of us together from the very beginning created the characters and story, but the one thing that never changed was the hero’s name was going to be Mudflap. So I had to figure out a way to make that ridiculous name make sense and work for the book.

I’ll let you decide. Below is an excerpt from THE SHADOW OF MUDFLAP about how MF ended up with his name…

She took a sip of her wine and looked at him appraisingly. "Okay, now it’s your turn to share. Tell me how in the world you got the name Mudflap. It has to be a nickname, right?"

He chuckled mockingly. "Unfortunately, no. It’s the name that my parents gave me on my birth certificate."

"Why? And please tell me that you’re an only child or that they didn’t do the same thing to your brothers and sisters."

His eyes sparkled with amusement although he tried to sound annoyed. "Are you making fun of my name?"

She worked to straighten her grin. "No sir, I would never make fun of a highbrow name like Mudflap." She giggled. "Come on. You have to tell me the story."

He sighed deeply before launching into the story. "I have a brother who’s seven years older than me and then twin sisters who are five years older."

"Ooh, twins run in your family, too. That settles it. We’re never allowed to procreate. We’d end up having a litter," she teased.

His eyes darkened for a moment as he considered her. A shiver of awareness rolled up her spine, but then he continued. "I wasn’t planned. My mom never forgave my dad for getting her pregnant. To add insult to injury, my dad was out hunting when mom went into labor. I’m not sure what the story is, but mom swears the night I was conceived dad was so horny, he got turned on by a mudflap girl. Obviously, that’s not even possible, but I honestly don’t really want to know what the whole story is. All I know is that mom was hormonal and ticked at dad and I paid for it with my name. She’s since forgiven me for being born, but I’m stuck with the name."

Shanae snickered. "That is so wrong." But her lips continued to twitch.

"Tell me about it. I’m the one who’s had to live with the name my whole life."

"Have you ever considered changing it?"

"Yeah, it’s crossed my mind a time or two or hell, one hundred times, but I figure it’s a good reminder to always use birth control."

She full-out guffawed at that. "Oh my God." The snorting continued. "That’s absolutely priceless." She giggled into her hand.

"Oh yeah, just continue to laugh it up. I see how you are."

"I’m sorry, but it really is a great story."



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Hindsight by Sarah Belle, Guest Post & Giveaway

 

 

Blurb

Humour, wit, and just a touch of humility: the swinging 60s as you’ve never seen them before!

The universe has sent Juliette a sign. She wishes it had been an email instead...

Juliette’s career is on fire, her marriage and family are in melt-down, and a red-hot goddess wants her husband. But those are the least of her worries when she wakes up on her lounge room floor in the year 1961.

Without any of her modern conveniences — nanny, housekeeper, surgically attached mobile phone, designer wardrobe, and intravenous lattes — Juliette is just over fifty years out of her comfort zone. But as she takes on the role of a 1961 housewife, with gritted liberated teeth, she discovers an unexpected truth: slower doesn’t mean boring, at home doesn’t mean dull, and priorities don’t mean sacrifices.

As she finds unexpected friendships, a resuscitated love life, tragedy and triumph, Juliette begins to wonder if she really wants to return home after all.

Link to Follow the Tour: http://tastybooktours.blogspot.com/2013/05/now-booking-tasty-virtual-book-tour-for_25.html



　

Buy Links

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Hindsight-ebook/dp/B00D5G5614/ref=la_B00DCEP7K4_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371960576&sr=1-1

Escape: http://www.escapepublishing.com.au/product/9780857990587


　

Author Info

Sarah Belle started her professional life in the hospitality industry, working in some of the roughest hotels in Melbourne in the late Eighties, surrounded by drug dealers, prostitutes, pimps, and undercover police. Tiring of the inherent dangers of her working environment, Sarah completed a business degree and went on to work in the recruitment industry and the Department of Defence, where she met and married the man of her dreams: a dashing, Army Blackhawk pilot. They have four young sons and live on the beautiful Queensland coast, where Sarah's days are spent being a frazzled mum, writer, Bikram Yoga devotee and the only woman in a house of five males.

Guest Post

Let me ask you a question: what do you think of a new genre of Women’s Fiction called ‘Romagic Comedy’?

It’s my own invention – probably not a very good one, but it is better than the Chakra underpants I came up with (so the wearer can have a dedicated Chakra colour, but not necessarily on show – great for those of us who can’t wear Yellow or Orange). The were going to be called ‘Chundies’, so I think that Romagic is a vast improvement.

Like a lot of other writers, the hardest question for me to answer is, "What genre do you write?" There are gazillions of genres and cross-over genres now, so it can be quite daunting just to answer one simple question without babbling like a loon. Just where does HINDSIGHT fit in?

It’s funny. It’s sad. It involves the emotional growth of the protagonist. It’s got romance in it. It involves time travel. It’s set in both modern day and 1961. It could fit in to six different genres.

I am told that Chick Lit is dead – although I don’t believe it. I don’t write straight romance because, for me, the romantic element is secondary to the journey the protagonist takes. So, for all of us who write with a dash, a twist of something supernatural, what do we call our style?

Here’s my answer: I write Romantic Comedy with a dash of magic – Romagic Comedy. What do you think? Is it growing on you yet?

Romantic comedies with a dash of magic captivate me because the entire premise is exceptional – whether it be past or future time travel, hypnosis, waking up dead or in another’s body, being haunted, possessed, the subject of a spell or a wish that has gone wrong – it has me interested because automatically the protagonist is way out of her comfort zone. On top of that, she has to contend with all the conflict and emotional growth the author can throw at her!

I love coming up with a crazy situation, such as waking up in 1961, and then casting the character for whom this situation would create the most turmoil and conflict – a career maniac who is reliant on technology, designer wardrobes, a nanny and housekeeper and cafe lattes to help get her through the day. Enter Juliette Wilde, protagonist of HINDSIGHT. Thank goodness she still has her sense of humour to fall back on!

If you are after more authors of ‘Romagic’ ( I doubt it will ever be adopted by the Oxford Dictionary), you might like to look at the works of: Juliet Madison (fellow Escape Artist), Jenny Colgan, Marian Keyes, Melanie Rose and Kristy Greenwood.

Blurb -

The universe has sent Juliette a sign. She wishes it had been an email instead...
Juliette’s career is on fire, her marriage and family are in melt-down, and a red-hot goddess wants her husband. But those are the least of her worries when she wakes up on her lounge room floor in the year 1961.

Without any of her modern conveniences — nanny, housekeeper, surgically attached mobile phone, designer wardrobe, and intravenous lattes — Juliette is just over fifty years out of her comfort zone. But as she takes on the role of a 1961 housewife, with gritted liberated teeth, she discovers an unexpected truth: slower doesn’t mean boring, at home doesn’t mean dull, and priorities don’t mean sacrifices.

As she finds unexpected friendships, a resuscitated love life, tragedy and triumph, Juliette begins to wonder if she really wants to return home after all.

I love talking to readers because no matter what we read or write, we all have something in common – the ability to escape into another’s world for a little while, to live many life times within our own. If you’d like to say hi, you can find me:
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sarah-Belle-Author/181235018692696?ref=hl

Twitter link https://twitter.com/SarahBelle44

Website : www.lovesarahbelle.com

Blog: www.sarahbelle.me

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/Sarah-Belle44

Buy Link (publisher): http://www.escapepublishing.com.au/product/9780857990587

 

Giveaway

To win a digital copy of Hindsight (Amazon or ITunes), just leave your name and email address in the comments sections below! 

Baby Stetson by Nikki Lynn Barrett, Spotlight & Guest Post

 

Blurb

In small Texas towns, strangers come and go...

Left in a Stetson hat, on the steps of the local bed and breakfast, Avery Callimer came into the world on a wing and a prayer. Raised by loving adoptive parents, she's never lacked for love...only the knowledge of her past.

By day she works the Inn, but by night...Avery comes alive as lead singer in a band. Life was good...stable, until new guests blew into town.　

Some strangers come with secrets and lies.

Lucas Bennett is one such stranger. Drifting from one mess to another has left him jaded. Doesn't matter the dramas are never his doing. Giving it one last shot to make a fresh start lands him Harmony's Echo, Texas and smack dab in front of the tantalizing Avery.

Despite his best efforts to ignore the burn Avery's ignited within, he's intent to keep his distance. Secrets have followed him. Secrets he doesn't want Avery to know. Each time they're near the other things heat up like a brushfire on a dry Texas prairie. But maybe, after the dust settles and the smoke clears, love can bloom with a fresh start.

Add this book to your goodreads list!

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17341981-baby-stetson

BUY LINKS

Amazon
 
Barnes & Noble
 
Kobo

AUTHOR BIO

Nikki Lynn Barrett lives in Arizona with her husband and son. She's an avid reader, a dreamer, and loves everything about books. She runs a book blog, an online used bookstore, and writes various genres of romance. Nikki can also be found outside with her camera when a storm is near, snapping photo after photo. Her dreams of becoming a writer started when she was young, when she started writing books in one subject notebooks by the fifth grade. The Secret Santa Wishing Well is her debut book. You can visit Nikki's site at:
www.nikkilynnbarrett.blogspot.com for more information. She is working on her next book. Nikki would love to hear from readers. Email her at nikkilynnbarrett@yahoo.com

 

Author Links

www.nikkilynnbarrett.blogspot.com

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6583655.Nikki_Lynn_Barrett



https://www.facebook.com/NikkiLynnBarrettauthor

@Stormgoddess925 on Twitter

Other books by Nikki Lynn Barrett

The Secret Santa Wishing Well



http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16159845-the-secret-santa-wishing-well

Guest Post

 

Full time mom? AND a writer?

　

Yes, it certainly can happen. Is it easy? Absolutely not.

I wear many hats. Not just as a mother, wife, and a writer. I'm also a blogger (Not just my author blog) I run an online bookstore, I partner with my mom on our jewelry business...and there's so much more.

Does that wear you out? Yeah, me too. There really aren't enough hours in the day. But, I have a lot of dreams and things I want to accomplish, so silly me, I try to take it all on.

Notice how I have no author picture? Do you think I REALLY want you to see the dark circles under my eyes? Uhh...no thank you :)

Honestly, I can't write while my son is home. At least, now when it's just him and I. He just turned four this past March, and if I could siphon even a quarter of his energy, I'd be set for weeks! This past August, my son qualified to go to a preschool. He's speech delayed, so we had speech therapy for him until his 3rd birthday and them come August, he started his school. He gets picked up at nine am and dropped off at 12: 20. It gives me a bit of a break and he gets to spend time around other kids and have lots of fun! (And he definitely does)

When I started out, I was writing three mornings a week. I managed to write a rough draft of The Secret Santa Wishing Well, my first book, in 6 weeks. It was only supposed to be a novella, but after revisions, it turned into a short novel. I made sure that every morning, instead of trying to get sleep or wasting my free time doing nothing, that I disciplined myself to write. When I finished Secret Santa, it was my first completed manuscript since 2004. It gave me the motivation that I could do whatever I wanted if I just put my mind to it. So, I stop writing at about 12:!5, get my son off the bus, feed him lunch and then we spend the next few hours together. We play, I work with him on his speech with various activities. My husband comes home at around four thirty, sometimes we'll have dinner right away, sometimes we don't.

I think what helps with being a full time mom and a writer is that my husband fully supports my writing. He reads my drafts, he edits, he does the formatting, and for Baby Stetson, he even did my cover. He's completely on board with it. So if my muse decides to say "LETS WRITE" he will take our son to the park or McDonald's for a few hours so they can eat and play, and I can write.

I also have sleep problems, so most nights after spending some time with my husband watching TV, playing a game, taking a walk, or whatever we chose, I'll wind up back in the library writing. Or, if I go to bed early enough, I get up when my husband does at 6:15 and write until I have to get my son up for school. It's all about time management, discipline and having support. Now that summer break is coming in about a month, I'm not quite sure how I'm going to manage....but it'll be another challenge to deal with.

Is it something everyone can do easily? Maybe, maybe not. Some things work for some, and for others, it's a whole different story. I'm fortunate to have a family that accepts my writer quirks and understands my need to listen to those fictional characters yelling in my head.

Thank you so much for listening to my rambles! I really appreciate this opportunity to be here!

Southern Embrace by Tamaria Soana, Guest post & Review

I have fellow Beachwalk babe Tamaria here today with her hot new release Southern Embrace. Take it away Tamaria!

Hello, and thank you for stopping by. I’m Tamaria Soana a contemporary romance author. My stories tend to be on the steamy side and always end with a happily ever after.

Southern Embrace my newest release was a very different story line for me to tackle. The story opens with Savannah my heroine trying to pick up the pieces of the broken heart her high school sweetheart Lance left her with when his family moves away the summer after graduation and he cuts her out of his life.

With some prompting for her best friend Nikki, Van (Savannah) goes out with the girls to a club and meets the handsome older Stephan. He sweeps her off her feet and she begins to heal. The stories over and they live happily ever after right? WRONG. The story is just beginning. In chapter 1 we learn that Stephan was killed in a car accident (I hated doing that). Savannah is twenty-three and the grief consumes her. Nikki her best friends steps in once again and arranges for Lance to run into her at the mall. Will Savannah give Lance a chance to explain and let him back into her life?

Southern Embrace is an emotional story about overcoming grief, forgiveness, and second chances.

I hope you’ll fall in love with Savannah and Lance as much as I have. Southern Embrace is from Savannah’s POV. I’m currently writing Southern Desire, the story from Lance’s POV.



Southern Embrace

Can a long lost love mend a grieving heart?

Widowed at twenty-three, Savannah Grant is devastated and consumed with grief, a grief that she can't seem to move past. When her high school sweetheart, Lance Peterson, re-enters her life, Savannah struggles with the feeling that she would be betraying her deceased husband by moving on. Plus, she can't forget the way Lance broke her heart all those years ago.

Lance never stopped loving Savannah. He wants a second chance, and he's willing to do anything it takes to convince her to give him one. Will she give in and let Lance love her, showing her a passion beyond anything she thought possible?

　

　

Content Warning: adult language, explicit sexual situations, anal play

　

　

Excerpt

It was a beautiful Friday afternoon. Van grabbed her purse and headed out to the mall. Nikki's shower was the following weekend, and Nikki had been on her to get a new dress for days, threatening to drag her shopping kicking and screaming if she didn't go herself.

Once at the mall, Van picked up some last minute gifts for Nikki. After trying on a few dresses, she found a knee-length, strapless coral dress. She purchased it and was off in search of a pair of shoes. When she found the perfect pair of coral and silver heels, Van concluded the trip to the mall a complete success.

Her cellphone rang as she was leaving the shoe store. She dug around in her bag to find it. With her head down and her steps brisk, she ran right into someone.

"I'm so sorry. I'm such a klutz," she said as she looked up into the brown eyes of her first love. She gasped and took a step back, surveying him. His light brown hair was a little shorter and he was built like a man now, not the boy she used to know. She stood frozen in place, staring at him. This can't be happening. A tidal wave of emotions rushed through her at once. Anger, resentment, hatred, but mainly pain…so much pain.

"Van."

"Lance? Oh my God!" She took another step back. "How?"

"I-I talked to Nikki. She told me you would be here. I needed to see you. When I heard what happened…" He paused. "I knew I couldn't stay away any longer. I'm so sorry."

The more he talked, the more Van's anger flared. Who does he think he is? He left me! Turned his back on me when he cut all ties!

"What exactly are you sorry for, Lance? That my husband died or that you broke my heart all those years ago?" The words she spoke were full of acid. "You have a lot of nerve just showing up here like nothing ever happened. Go away." She turned to leave.

"Please, Van, just talk to me. Give me a chance to explain," he begged as he reached for her hand.

"Don't you dare touch me," she said through gritted teeth, yanking her hand away. "What do you want from me?" She stared at him while plotting all the ways she was going to torture Nikki for her betrayal.

She seethed as he looked around. "Calm down, Van. People are starting to stare. Please, can we go somewhere more private and talk? There is so much I need to tell you."

"What could you possibly have to say to me that would make up for what you did? I mean, I know you had to move, but you cut all ties with me. Like the three years we spent together meant nothing to you, like I meant nothing to you. Damn you, Lance, you didn't even try to make it work."

"Please, Savannah. Give me a chance to explain."

"Give me one reason why I should."

"Because I still love you. I. Never. Stopped. I cut all ties with you because I had to. Long distance relationships never work out. I was afraid you would wake up one day and resent me. Being apart from you was killing me. I thought this way we would both be able to move on. But I was wrong, I never was able to move on. I let the love I have for you consume me. I wanted to come back sooner, but then I heard you'd gotten married. When I found out what had happened, I wanted to rush here and be by your side, but I figured you would need some time."

His words shocked and confused her. After she took a few moments to process everything, she shook her head. "I can't do this." She turned and walked away, then stopped. "Go back to wherever it was you came from and leave me alone."

"I won't give up on you. I won't stop trying, and I most definitely won't ever leave you again."

"Just go away, Lance. You're good at that," she snarled before she walked away. She didn't dare turn around because looking at him as he begged her to give him a chance to explain would certainly weaken her. Van needed to focus on how she was going to kill her so-called best friend.

　


Buy links:　　Beachwalk　 Press　　　　　　　Barnes & Noble　　　　　　Amazon

　

Watch the Trailer

YouTube Link

　

About the Author

Tamaria Soana is middle aged, but just feels her life has begun. She writes sexy　contemporary　romance stories that always end with a ‘happily ever after’. Growing up she loved to read and make up new places in her head to escape to. In her late teens she began writing short stories and poetry; it wasn’t until her late thirties before she began to spin a full story.　

She’s married and a stay-at-home-mom of two beautiful young girls, they reside in Western New York. Cuddling up with a good book under an electric throw is her way to　escape the cold Buffalo nights.　

Besides writing, she co-owns Shades of Rose Marketing and hosts a talk show on Talkshoe called Live with Tamaria ~ Giving authors a voice.

Author Links:　　　　Site　　　　　Facebook Author Page　　　　　Twitter

　

Review

 

Thank you so much for stopping by Tamaria! Well I have read Southern Embrace and couldn't recommend it enough. Here's my thoughts on it.

When Savannah’s husband is killed in a car crash she is widowed at just twenty three, and she is understandably completely broken. Even though I’d read a lot of reviews warning me I’d cry, I honestly didn’t think it would affect me the way it did. Within the first chapter I was reaching for the tissues, and the scene where Savannah at her husband’s grave gave me goosebumps. I was totally absorbed by the story, and I imagined that if I were in her position, I would not have had the strength to go on. It was a page turner from the start, since Tamaria managed to create such a strong character right from the word go, and I just had to make sure that she found her happy ever after. I was a bit dubious about Lance at the beginning, as the Savannah herself surely was, but after a couple of chapters you can see that he doesn’t want to replace her dead husband at all, but wants to help Savannah reach a place where she can remember her husband, but also live her own life, and more importantly enjoy it. I also loved the role that her friend played in the book, because although Lance is Savannah’s hero, it is clear that her best friend Nicki kept her going at the start.

This was a book I couldn’t put down, and even though it was emotional, it was also extremely uplifting, and it’s a story that will stay with me for a long time. If you haven’t read it yet, this is definitely one you shouldn’t miss.

　

Stormy Surrender by Nicole Andrews Moore, Guest Post & Spotlight

Today I'm very lucky to have Nicole Andrews Moore here with me doing a guest post, but first of all, lets find out a little about her hot new release Stormy Surrender!

Blurb

Sometimes the life you planned isn’t the one you get to live. Sometimes the pain of the past overshadows the future. And sometimes to start over you have to go back to where it all began. That’s how it was for Joe Masters. That’s how he ended up back in New Hope. And that’s why he was in his thirties and had nothing to show for his life. He needed a complete overhaul, just like his father’s old house. Instead of a fast track, he had slowed down and was on a ten year plan. These days that was more his speed. And as much as he tried to fight the inevitable, he was learning to accept and surrender.

Martha had weathered her fair share of storms in Vermont, was accustomed to the cold, both the chill in the air and the cold shoulder in her marriage, but after the miscarriage she felt like she would never get warm again. So she did the research from the laptop while sitting in front of the fireplace. She knew what she needed when she Googled hope, she just never imagined that it would bring her to New Hope, South Carolina. She never imagined that her husband would trick her into leaving and never follow. She never imagined that a southern storm with all its force and fury could be so destructive. But after the storm, the land is washed clean. It’s perfect for a fresh start, a clean slate, and a new love.

Author Info

Nicki has lived in Charlotte, North Carolina with her children for the past eleven years and her husband for the past three years.　 Her journey has barely begun and she loves every minute of it.　 Every day of her life seems to bring new adventures, some bigger, better, shinier and prettier than others.　　She's still getting used to that new life smell she's experiencing, a combination of hope, love, and happiness.　 (The perfect scents to build a new life on...)

For fun, she spends time with those she cares about, cooks, reads, writes, and especially lives to travel.　 The current travel goal: visit every Margaritaville.　 Two down!　 (Eleven to go?)

In addition to writing on Suddenly Single Journey, Nicki is a contributor for Project Underblog.　 Her writing can also be found on Shine, where she is a Shine Parenting Guru and an award winning Yahoo! Contributor on YourWisdom as the relationship and dating expert.　 And she has been published by McClatchy News in their syndicated papers.

Author Links

http://facebook.com/NicoleAndrewsMoore


http://thenicknick.wix.com/novels-by-nicole


http://twitter.com/thenicknick


http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6870143.Nicole_Andrews_Moore

Guest post

What inspires the characters? Do you aspire to be like them or are they all a bit of you?

Like most writers, I can honestly say that every character I create is based on me, my personality and my life…or that of someone I know. In Stormy Surrender, I am Martha/Marti. I moved here from the Adirondacks. While I was considered reasonably stylish for that part of the world, I soon discovered that my style and pretty much every bit of me needed an update for Charlotte, North Carolina. It was good for me. I understood Marti from the moment I started writing this story. I have lost babies. I have yearned for love with the right man. I found love right under my nose in the neighbor five doors down. I always wanted to be the best possible version of myself, as long as I didn’t have to feel deprived of food. That’s part of what makes Marti the ideal me. She is also fierier than I am. She says things I only think; that I would never had the courage to say out loud.

Keely is loosely based on my former co-worker and neighbor. She is every bit the woman I portray her to be, super pleasant, a second mother to me, a woman who isn’t afraid to speak her mind, but does it in the nicest possible way. She is filled with boundless energy and the perkiest personality you could ever hope to encounter. The same is true of Laurel. She is a neighbor. Not only is she a neighbor, but she is a neighbor that cooks and bakes and works in the food service industry. She feeds the body and the souls of those she encounters. And she isn’t afraid to speak her mind in her Long Island accent.

It’s no secret by now that my husband, Sam, inspires Joey. This was always supposed to be our story…somewhat fictionalized. I tried to capture his ruggedly handsome good looks. He really is a ginger. He has the temper that goes with it. He can be incredibly sweet, thoughtful, and considerate. He really did leave all the lights on in the house for me. He believes in making memories and souvenirs. He is funny and frustrating and we really do have that much chemistry, for better or worse. And I really couldn’t imagine sharing this life with anyone else. We live it big. We fight for our happy. It fits us just right.

The next installment of this series will be out soon, within the next couple of months. I have other writing commitments to complete in the meantime. Watch for the sequel of Hiding Out next month: Finally Found, filled with characters that come from my imagination, but I know just as well as I do all the rest.

 

Thank you very much for that Nicole! It's great to learn a bit more about you and your characters!

 

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