Showing posts with label Price McNaughton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Price McNaughton. Show all posts

Friday, June 7, 2013

Ten Authors, Twenty Questions!

Today I'm happy to run another Ten Authors, Twenty Questions feature. The first one ran in April, and you can read it here. I have some great authors for this second go-round, and I think you'll enjoy their answers...

1. Christoph Fischer

Christoph is the author of The Luck of the Weissensteiners and Sebastian.
He was here on April 25 and here on May 23.

1.    Love or money?
Love, always

2.    Plain or peanut?
Plain, how boring ;-)

3.    Beef or chicken?
I am vegetarian, but probably chicken.

4.    Coffee or tea? Coffee.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
No.

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
Hardback.

7.    Salty or sweet?
Salty.

8.    City or country?
Country.

9.    Dog or cat?
Dog.

10.    Fame or fortune?
Fortune.

11.    Laptop or desktop?
Desktop.

12.    Health food or junk food?
Health Food.

13.    Mountains or beach?

Tough one, Mountains (near a beach please if possible) Oh! That's cheating!!

14.    Gourmet or diner?
Gourmet.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course)
Unsweet.

16.    Humor or drama? 
I like a laugh and should enjoy humor more often, but I tend to go for the big dramas.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?

Mr. Spock, I love Star Trek – don’t know why...

18.    Halloween or Christmas?

Halloween.

19.    Spring or fall?

So tough, probably fall for the colours.

20.    Morning or night?

Morning.




Facebook | Facebook: Weissensteiners | Facebook: Sebastian | Goodreads | Writer's Blog |
Reviewer's Blog | Amazon US | Amazon UK | Barnes and Noble

2. Cindy Blackburn

Cindy is the author of the Cue Ball mystery series.
She brought Wilson Rye here on May 28.

1.    Love or money?
Oh, what the heck. Love.

2.    Plain or peanut?
Plain, definitely. Unless we’re talking M&M’s. We're definitely talking M&Ms.

3.    Beef or chicken?
Beef. A gal needs her red meat.

4.    Coffee or tea?

Coffee, with lots of 2% milk, please.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
Yes! I’ve become addicted to the Oxford comma ever since I read “Eats, Shoots, and Leaves.”

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
Kindle.

7.    Salty or sweet?
Now THIS takes some careful consideration, Amy! Okay, salty. As long as this includes an occasional salted chocolate treat?  Hmm...that could be cheating...

8.    City or country?
Country. More and more so all the time.

9.    Dog or cat?
Cat for myself. Dogs are fun to visit, though.

10.    Fame or fortune?
Fame. Is this somehow tied to question number one?

11.    Laptop or desktop?
Laptop. We are on the go, here at the Cue Ball Mysteries headquarters!

12.    Health food or junk food? 
Health food. But this might be a tad bit hard to swallow (no pun intended) looking at my other answers. LOL!

13.    Mountains or beach?
Mountains. The Green Mountains of Vermont, preferably.

14.    Gourmet or diner?

Diner, unless hubby’s the cook. Bless his heart, he’s into gourmet.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course)
Unsweet. I may live in SC most of the time, but I am a Vermont Yankee, born and bred. Bless your heart.

16.    Humor or drama?

Humor, humor, and humor. (Please note the correct usage of the Oxford comma) YES!

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?
Dr. Suess, especially since you can get the pointy ears from just about all of his
characters.

18.    Halloween or Christmas?
Christmas, as long as you don’t want to exchange blog gifts or some such. No Secret Santa Blog Edition here!

19.    Spring or fall?
Spring!

20.    Morning or night?
Morning. Why I chose coffee over tea. Ahhhh!

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Website | Amazon


3. Andy Nieman

Andy is the author of Free Man Walking. He was here on May 13.


1.    Love or money?   
Love

2.    Plain or peanut?
Peanut


3.    Beef or chicken?
Chicken

4.    Coffee or tea?
Coffee

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
No

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
Hardback

7.    Salty or sweet?
Salty

8.    City or country?

Country

9.    Dog or cat?
Dog

10.    Fame or fortune?
Fortune

11.    Laptop or desktop?

Laptop

12.    Health food or junk food?
Health Food

13.    Mountains or beach?
Mountains

14.    Gourmet or diner?
Gourmet   

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course)
Sweet

16.    Humor or drama?

Drama

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?

Dr Seuss

18.    Halloween or Christmas?

Christmas

19.    Spring or fall?

Fall

20.    Morning or night?
Morning

 Amazon | Goodreads | Facebook |


4. Chrissy Anderson

Chrissy is the author of The List Trilogy.
She was here on November 3 and May 1.

1.    Love or money? 
Love peppered with some cash on top. You are such a cheater!

2.    Plain or peanut? 

Peanut...Extra crunchy.

3.    Beef or chicken? 
Beef.

4.    Coffee or tea? 

Port. Ahem.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no? 
I am ALL about the Oxford comma. I taught you well. :)
 
6.    Hardback or Kindle? 
HARDback.

7.    Salty or sweet? 

Salty.

8.    City or country? 
Who cares? Just get me outta both of mine for a week!

9.    Dog or cat? 

Dogger-Doo.

10.    Fame or fortune?

Fame.

11.    Laptop or desktop?

Laptop.

12.    Health food or junk food? 
Hell-Ju.  Cheater!!

13.    Mountains or beach? 
Beach.

14.    Gourmet or diner? 
Gourmet.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course) 
Unsweet.  I’m sweet enough.


16.    Humor or drama? 

Humor...all day, every day.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock? 
Neither.

18.    Halloween or Christmas?
 
I’m an elf on Halloween.

19.    Spring or fall? 
FALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

20.    Morning or night? 
Night, after everyone has fallen asleep.  The best.

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Website | Amazon



5. Elizabeth Delisi

Elizabeth is the author of The Midnight Zone and twelve other books! She was here on May 4.

1.    Love or money?

Since I married for love, now I’d like the money! Who said you can't have it all, right?

2.    Plain or peanut?

Peanut, so I can fool myself that it’s healthy.

3.    Beef or chicken?
“Chick-N” as I’m a vegetarian.

4.    Coffee or tea?
Tea is first choice, coffee second.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
Yes. I’m “comma-tose.” Good one!

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
I’m leaning toward Kindle as it’s lighter and easier to hold.

7.    Salty or sweet?

Definitely sweet, for my sweet tooth!

8.    City or country?

Country, where I can hear the wild animals and birds, not humans.

9.    Dog or cat?
Ooh. Both! Cats are cuddly and independent, dogs are great friends.

10.    Fame or fortune?

Fortune, definitely. Fame is more trouble than it’s worth.

11.    Laptop or desktop?
Laptop, for portability.

12.    Health food or junk food?

Junk food, I’m ashamed to say.

13.    Mountains or beach?
Mountains, definitely.

14.    Gourmet or diner?

Depends on my mood...I like both. No fair!

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course)
Sweet.

16.    Humor or drama?

I like both, but I watch and read more dramas.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?

Mr. Spock...I’m a Star Trek fan through and through.

18.    Halloween or Christmas?

Christmas, definitely. Love the decorations and carols.

19.    Spring or fall?
Fall, with the gorgeous New Hampshire fall leaves.

20.    Morning or night?
Night...getting up any earlier than 8 is torture. We would get along very well!

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Website | Amazon


6. Peter Ochs

Peter is the author of Eyes of the Sage. He was here on May 5.


1.    Love or money? 

I’ve had plenty of love so let’s try money for a change.

2.    Plain or peanut? 

No preference.  It’s all good.

3.    Beef or chicken? 
Ditto.

4.    Coffee or tea? 
Coffee.  And not that I’m a Starbucks snob. I only went there a few years ago for the first time.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no? 

If I said no, would you tell my parents, Bob and Fred? Yes, I certainly will.

6.    Hardback or Kindle? 
Nook!!!

7.    Salty or sweet? 
Salty.  Too much salt is overrated.

8.    City or country? 

Country.  But not as country as John Denver.

9.    Dog or cat? 
Dog. I’m getting my first dog in a couple of weeks. I can’t wait. (My parents wouldn’t allow us to have pets when I was growing up.)

10.    Fame or fortune? 
Fortune...and obscurity.

11.    Laptop or desktop? 
Still gotta have my tower right beside me.

12.    Health food or junk food?
 
Junk food of course. I’ve got so much preservatives in me I’m almost eternal.

13.    Mountains or beach? 

Mountains. I grew up on a beach. Need a change of scenery.

14.    Gourmet or diner? 
I’ll eat anything, anywhere, anytime.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course.)

Not a tea drinker. La la la la la la...I didn't hear that...

16.    Humor or drama? 

Comedy is tragedy that happens to someone else. Think about it, then go watch Laurel and hardy.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock? 
Leaning towards Spock, but I am not a trekkie!

18.    Halloween or Christmas? 
Presents are better than candy.

19.    Spring or fall?
 
Nothing better than fall in New England.

20.    Morning or night? 
Night. That’s when Jon Stewart comes on.

Website | Blog | Facebook | Amazon     

7. Price McNaughton


Price is the author of A Vision of Murder. She was here on April 15.

1.    Love or money?
Love.

2.    Plain or peanut?
Peanut.

3.    Beef or chicken?
Chicken.

4.    Coffee or tea?
Tea.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
Yes.

6.    Hardback or Kindle?

Hardback.

7.    Salty or sweet?

Sweet.

8.    City or country?

Country.

9.    Dog or cat?
Dog.

10.    Fame or fortune?

Fame?

11.    Laptop or desktop?
Laptop.

12.    Health food or junk food?

Health food.

13.    Mountains or beach?
Mountains.

14.    Gourmet or diner?
Diner.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course.)

Sweet!

16.    Humor or drama?
Humor.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?
Dr. Seuss.

18.    Halloween or Christmas?
Christmas.

19.    Spring or fall?
Fall.

20.    Morning or night?
Night.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon


8. RH (Rhonda) Ramsey


Rhonda is the author of Just Beneath The Surface. She saw the first "Ten Authors Twenty Questions," and wanted to take part in the second one. Yes, I'm that easy. Just ask!

1.    Love or money?
Love – always love

2.    Plain or peanut?
Can I actually pick macadamia? If not, I will go with plain...

3.    Beef or chicken?
It used to be beef, then it was chicken, now it’s back to beef.  Unless it’s shredded beef – if it’s shredded beef, I will choose chicken.

4.    Coffee or tea?
Definitely tea, unless there’s some sort of caramel cappuccino option.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?

Umm .. I think not. It was for some reason difficult for me to remember. Now that it’s ingrained, there’s no turning back.

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
Kindle, please!

7.    Salty or sweet?

Salty!!! (It’s really not even normal, anymore)

8.    City or country?
I’d have to say: City with a country feel or country town with a city feel. Hmmm...that might be cheating...

9.    Dog or cat?
Euw! That’s tough – definitely love puppies; I’ve always had dogs growing up. But I will go with cat, because they are so independent, moody and fun to watch.

10.    Fame or fortune?
Fortune (and favor from above) would be just fine by me without fame.

11.    Laptop or desktop?
Laptop! I am all about convenience.

12.    Health food or junk food?

I’ve been known to find ways to combine the two. Not in a way that they would cancel each other out, but just enough to spice things up. That's a good compromise.

13.    Mountains or beach?
Mountains...

14.    Gourmet or diner?

Diner.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course.)
Definitely sweet. The expression on my face when I order sweet and end up sipping unsweet is probably priceless. Sort-of happens often for some reason come to think of it. Oh yeah...I hate when that happens!

16.    Humor or drama?

Drama – that’s the genre I’m drawn to with music, reading, movies and writing. But then, again, there’s nothing like a good stand-up comic.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?
Dr Seuss. “Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”
“Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.”

18.    Halloween or Christmas?
Definitely Christmas. Halloween costumes are cute. But for me, there’s nothing like the reason for the season, the music, the smiles on the faces of children – I would have to say Christmas.

19.    Spring or fall?
That’s a difficult one for me. I’m a December baby and I love winter. I’m not a fan of summer. I enjoy spring rain showers. But I really love the fall foliage – it does something to the senses.

20.    Morning or night?

Sadly, I find that I’m a lot like Smeagol when I first wake up. No matter how much caffeine I get my hands on, I really don’t feel as if the “day” has started until around 11 p.m. I’ve always been a night owl, and now that I am an adult, I find that the wee hours are the best time for me to brainstorm and create.

Website
| Facebook | Twitter | Amazon | Smashwords


9. Tracy Sweeney


Tracy is the author of Living Backwards. She was here on April 11.

1.    Love or money?   
Love. Always.

2.    Plain or peanut?

Peanut. But I’d never turn down plain.

3.    Beef or chicken?  

Beef.

4.    Coffee or tea?   
Tea.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
Never.

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
 
Kindle, but I miss my bookshelf.

7.    Salty or sweet?   
Chocolate covered pretzels. Perfection.

8.    City or country?   
City mouse.

9.    Dog or cat?   
Dog.

10.    Fame or fortune?     
Fame. Also a great movie.

11.    Laptop or desktop? 

Laptop.

12.    Health food or junk food? 

Junk food. Sadly.

13.    Mountains or beach? 
Beach.

14.    Gourmet or diner?  
Diner.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course.) 
Sweet.

16.    Humor or drama?
Hah. Humor.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock? 
Dr. Seuss.

18.    Halloween or Christmas? 

Christmas.

19.    Spring or fall? 
Fall.

20.    Morning or night?  
Night.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon


10. Danielle Stewart


Danielle is the author of Chasing Justice. Danielle will be here on June 12.

1.    Love or money?
Love.

2.    Plain or peanut?
Plain.

3.    Beef or chicken?
Chicken.

4.    Coffee or tea?
Tea.

5.    Oxford comma: yes or no?
Yes.

6.    Hardback or Kindle?
Kindle.

7.    Salty or sweet?
Sweet.

8.    City or country?
Country.

9.    Dog or cat?
Cat.

10.    Fame or fortune?
Fame

11.    Laptop or desktop?
Laptop.

12.    Health food or junk food?
Junk food

13.    Mountains or beach?
Beach.

14.    Gourmet or diner?
Diner.

15.    Sweet or unsweet? (Tea of course.)
Sweet.

16.    Humor or drama?
Humor.

17.    Dr. Seuss or Mr. Spock?
Dr. Seuss.

18.    Halloween or Christmas?
Christmas.

19.    Spring or fall?
Spring.

20.    Morning or night?
Morning.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon

Monday, April 15, 2013

Featured Book: Murder is Ugly

I love doing character interviews, and I'm happy to have Jinx Delaney here today to talk about her new mystery novel, Murder is Ugly, by Price McNaughton. The book was released on April 9 by Talebearers Publishing.

About the book:

When Jinx Delaney accepted her friend Brynn Brookefield's invitation to spend the summer with Brynn and her family, she expected a relaxed, fun, horse-filled getaway that would hopefully help her find direction and get her life back on track. However, upon her arrival at the Brookefield’s exclusive community, she begins to suspect that not everything is as perfect as the members of the wealthy, picturesque neighborhood would like her to believe. Jinx finds herself embroiled in a web of suspense and deceit as a series of grisly crimes sweeps through the community, revealing dark secrets and tearing apart the residents’ seemingly perfect lives. As neighbor turns against neighbor, Jinx begins to realize that when it comes to high society, murder really is ugly.

Set against a backdrop of a historic, Old South community and a high class horse barn, McNaughton weaves a riveting tale of murder and suspense, filled to the brim with twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the end, while skillfully painting the ironic tale of a community whose beauty lies only skin deep.


About the character:

Jinx Delaney is a recent college graduate who is looking for her purpose in life. She loves her horse, Ranger, and dreams of competing with him professionally, but she’s not sure what direction to go in. When she visits her sorority sister, Brynn Brookefield, for the summer, she finds herself swept up in mystery. The historic homes in the closed community her friend calls home are filled with secrets and gossip. Jinx finds that her summer may be more than she bargained for when one of the neighbors turns up dead.

Character Interview with Jinx Delaney

How did you first meet Price?

Well, Price had me in the back of her mind for quite some time. A mystery presented itself to her and then I rumbled up in my old blue and white truck, ready to solve it.

Want to dish about her?


She’s nice, but a tad forgetful. She changed my name several times, and I still have trouble going by the new one, though it does have special meaning.

Did you ever think that your life would end up being in a book?

Not at all! I find that my writer and I are very alike, so I thought I would end up more like her. Definitely not involved in mysterious deaths and a secret community.

Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.

I think the night of the party was pretty special to me. I had never seen anything like it so it made a big impression. But that walk home in the rain...Brrr!

Did you have a hard time convincing your author to write any particular scenes for you?

No, she was willing to put me in pretty much every scene. I’m a little nosy, so it was easy to squeeze myself into some tight situations. In the future though, I want more time with Ranger and a stronger focus on our upcoming competitions. She’s assured me that it shouldn’t be a problem.

What do you like to do when you are not being actively read somewhere?


I love riding! I can’t wait to start hauling Ranger to some local shows, but I’ve got my eyes on the big time. Maybe you’ll see the two of us in lights someday.

If you could rewrite anything in your book, what would it be?

It was hard on me to lose my newfound friends. I’d like to write them back to existence, but Price has told me that mysteries don’t work that way.

She's right. Tell the truth. What do you think of your fellow characters?

To be perfectly honest, I don’t care for many of them. In Murder is Ugly, I really only know one person, my sorority sister, Brynn. I find this closed community and some of the people who live in it to be a bit creepy.

Do have any secret aspirations that your author doesn’t know about?

I’d love to try some trick riding.

If you had a free day with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?

Exactly what I’ve been doing this summer. Riding in the morning and swimming in the afternoon.



What impression do you make on people when they first meet you? How about after they've known you for a while?

I think they think of me as sweet and innocent, but after they’ve known me for a while they find that I’m much more clever than they thought.



Ah, one of those. What's the worst thing that's happened in your life? What did you learn from it?

It’s hard to name just one thing, but knowing someone who was murdered was pretty terrible.

Tell us about your best friend.

Brynn is hilarious. She’s loyal and sweet. She’s also great with her horse, Banshee. We have so much fun together. 



What are you most afraid of?

Murderers!!!



Are there a lot of murders in your town?

No, not in my hometown, but I have found that there have been a lot of deaths in Brynn's neighborhood. It's rather odd, now that I think about it.


Yikes. What’s the best trait your author has given you? 

I think my best trait is that I’m very down to earth.

What’s the worst?

My worst trait is definitely my overactive imagination.



What do you like best about Max? Least?

Brynn’s brother Max is fun, loyal, and handsome, but he’s also very mysterious. It’s hard to figure him out.



Honey, all men are hard to figure out. He sounds like a keeper to me. How do you feel about your life right now? What, if anything, would you like to change?

I’m in a strange place. I’m trying to figure out what I’m going to do with my future. It’s definitely time for a change. I would like to start competing with Ranger and work my way up to the pro level.

What aspect of your author’s writing style do you like best?

I like the way she describes spooky scenes.

If your story were a movie, who would play you?

My author!

Describe the town where you live.

The town where I live is very boring, so I’ll tell you a bit about the community instead. It’s closed off and everyone here seems to be rich. You would have to be to afford the upkeep the community demands. Everyone spies on their neighbors, and I’ve never seen people pass more judgement on others than here.

Describe an average day in your life.

Right now, I wake up, go jogging with Brynn, go horseback riding, hang out by the pool, and attend community functions. But after this summer, I don’t know what it will be like.

Why? What happens after summer?

After this summer, I'll have to make new plans. The Brookefields have kindly had me as a guest, but I'll have to leave soon. I'm not sure what I'm going to do or where I'm going to go as of right now. Hopefully, it will come to me.


Will you encourage your author to write a sequel?

Of course! Ranger and I have a lot of stories and adventures left in us. She can’t give up on us now.

Well, good luck wherever you end up. I hope murder doesn't follow you, but if it does, and you end up in another book, come back to tell us about it, okay?

About the author:

Price McNaughton was born and raised in a small town in Tennessee. A childhood steeped in the stories and legends of her ancestors as well as the southern way of life led her to carry on the tradition and become a storyteller herself. After years of traveling and working at a variety of jobs, she has finally returned to her roots and devoted herself to writing. A Vision of Murder is her first book.

Note: A Vision of Murder is free on Kindle today, April 15!

Connect with Price:
Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Buy the book:
Amazon / Barnes & Noble