Leaving Emily was Mitch’s greatest mistake. Can she forgive him?
Growing up, Mitch Carson had always dreamed of leaving Holton, Texas, traveling the world, and writing life altering stories. As an investigative journalist, he made those dreams come true, but he left behind the only woman he ever loved. That was his greatest mistake. Mitch has returned home to see if she can forgive him for leaving her when she needed him the most.
In high school, Emily Fairview had fallen deeply, madly, and completely in love with Mitch. The two of them planned a life together far away from Holton, but when Emily’s family needed her, she chose to stay. Mitch chose to leave. Fifteen years later Mitch is back and wants a second chance, but Emily doesn’t know if she can forgive him.
Return to Holton, Texas one last time to see if Mitch can get Emily to forgive him. Forgive Me is the fourth and final book in the Holton Series but may be read as a standalone novel.
Excerpt from Forgive Me
“Paul seemed pretty excited about that ad campaign,” Emily said after a moment of silence.
Mitch glanced at her and nodded. “Advertising is his passion.”
“What?” she asked.
“His passion,” Mitch repeated. “You know the thing he loves.”
Emily cocked her head and gave him a smile. “I thought Rachel was his passion.”
Mitch laughed. “Well, yeah, that’s a given. But advertising is also a passion. It gets his juices flowing. He loves it. You can tell. I believe everyone has at least one passion. It may not always be a healthy one, but everyone has to have something that drives them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Take Steven, for example,” he said to her. Emily looked over at his brother. “You know him pretty well. What do you think is the most important thing to him?”
“Anna,” she said promptly. “Well, and Mia. And your parents, you, and Tori.” She stopped and laughed. “I guess that’s more than one thing.”
“No. You got it right. It’s family. Steven has always been a family guy. Has always wanted to be with his family, in his hometown. That’s his passion.”
“Hmm,” Emily said thinking. “Do you have a passion?”
“Sure, I have three.”
“Three? What are they?”
He shot her a sly look. “You tell me yours, and I’ll tell you mine.”
He hadn’t expected the sad look that crossed her face. She didn’t respond. He reached for her hand and squeezed. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t think I have a passion,” she whispered.
“Sure, you do.” She shook her head so he continued. “You’re passionate about computers.”
She thought about it for a minute. “Not really. I mean I like working with them. I enjoy teaching about them, but I don’t think I can call it a passion.” She paused. “I really don’t have a passion.”
“Well, then, I guess we will have to find you one.”
About the author
B. L. Blair writes simple and sweet romance and mystery/romance stories. Like most authors, she has been writing most of her life and has dozens of books started. She just needs the time to finish them.
She is the author of the Holton Romance Series and the Leah Norwood Mysteries. She enjoys reading books, writing books, and traveling wherever and as often as time and money allows. She is currently working on her latest book set in Texas, where she lives with her family.
In 1920s Galveston, society reporter Jazz Cross is in for a surprise when she attends a traveling vaudeville show with her beau, Prohibition Agent James Burton, and sees an old flame in the production. That night, they find a stabbing victim behind the Oasis — her half-brother Sammy’s speakeasy — who’s identified as an actor in the troupe. When the victim disappears and later turns up dead, Jazz must help prove that Sammy wasn’t the killer. After a second vaudeville actor is found dead, Jazz discovers that the events behind the scenes are much more interesting than the outdated acts onstage.
To make matters worse, Sammy’s old nemesis demands that he settles a score and forces him into yet another illegal scheme involving the troupe’s money-making ventures. Can Jazz help solve the murders and prove her brother’s innocence—so he can get away from the Downtown Gang for good?
A historical Jazz Age mystery inspired by real-life Galveston gangs and local landmarks. Vamps, Villains and Vaudeville will be out in late spring/early summer.
Check out Goodreads for the book giveaway for Gold Diggers, Gamblers and Guns through May 25.
Jazz Age Mysteries
About this author
Ellen Mansoor Collier is a Houston-based freelance magazine writer and editor whose articles, essays and short stories have been published in a variety of national magazines. During college summers, she worked as a reporter for a Houston community newspaper and as a cocktail waitress, both jobs providing background experience for her Jazz Age mysteries.
A flapper at heart, she's worked as a magazine editor/writer, and in advertising and public relations (plus endured a hectic semester as a substitute teacher). She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Magazine Journalism and served on UTmost, the college magazine and as president of WICI (Women in Communications).
Flappers, Flasks and Foul Play is her first novel, published in 2012, followed by the sequel, Bathing Beauties, Booze and Bullets, released in 2013. Gold Diggers, Gamblers and Guns, the third book in the trilogy, came out in May 2014 and picks up right after BBB.
Collier lives in Houston with her husband and Chow mutts, and visits Galveston whenever possible.
"When you grow up in Houston, Galveston becomes like a second home. I had no idea this sleepy beach town had such a wild and colorful past until I began doing research, and became fascinated by the legends and stories of the 1920s. Finally I had to stop researching and start writing, trying to imagine a flapper's life in Galveston during Prohibition."
When Olivia gets news of her best friend Dan’s fatal car accident, her life is shattered. Consumed with grief and struggling to find any meaning or purpose to life, she trudges along with a gaping void in her heart. Finally, when her frustration reaches its peak, Olivia decides to put her trust in the depth of friendship the two of them shared. That trust finally allows him to breakthrough to her, and Dan begins to guide Olivia through the twists and turns of her life, leading to something new and entirely unexpected.
When Olivia exposes a gigantic internal scandal at work, her career implodes. With no job and nowhere to turn, she escapes to Palm Springs for the sympathy and care of her beloved cousin, Garrett. However, with only weeks left before the opening of his newest store, “Gin and Tonic,” Garrett isn’t quite the comfort Olivia had expected. She yet again tries to find her way, and in the process meets someone who begins to fill that void in her heart. She’s never before experienced a love like this; it heals her soul and rekindles her spirit – and just may have been the design of her dearly departed friend all along.
Beyond Believing is a sweet, funny, and romantic story that touches the heart, serves up delicious twists and turns, and shows the reader that there’s no such thing as “coincidence.” Author D.D. Marx regards this book as her “love letter to friendship,” written in memory of her best friend, Dan.
Guest Post by DD Marx
My VIRTUAL Tour across Europe
When writing my novel, I knew I wanted to have worlds collide so I would have to write from a perspective that was foreign to me. What I learned from it is that my bucket list continues to grow! I started with research, in many forms. I based one of my main characters in Scotland, a place I had never been and he was a Chef my trade something I knew little about. I started with my darling neighbor who was born and raised on Scotland. I asked her lots of questions to ensure I could describe the smallest of details. I searched on line, looked at many photos and studied surrounding areas to make sure I wouldn’t sound like a novice on the subject.
I made the character a Chef. Why? Well I don’t really know why, but it seems like a very admirable and amazing profession that takes just as much art as it does skill. This was even more fun to research because it involved a considerable amount of time watching the Food Network: Top Chef, Cut Throat Kitchen, Beat Bobby Flay, and Chopped. I did searches of food festivals and famous restaurants in the areas of the world that I was trying to portray.
What it resulted in was hopefully a very colorful experience for my readers. I hope it lead to them salivating thinking of the delicious dishes that were being prepared and the surrounding in which they were being consumed. It really just made me hungry throughout the writing process. I am thinking about putting together a literal “book tour” together to follow my characters journey. I think it would make a remarkable vacation. Anyone want to join me?
About the author
D.D. Marx is a contemporary romantic fiction writer and blogger, as well
as a lover of all things social. She is a graduate of the University of
Dayton, as well as the Second City program in Chicago, where she
currently resides. A proud aunt and self-described hopeless romantic,
Marx has always has a knack for humorous and engaging storytelling. Her
pen name is a dedication to her beloved friend Dan, who continues to
guide and inspire her in her daily life. Connect with DD: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest
Best pals Jason Medley and Theo Barnes barely survived a backpacking trip through Europe and New Zealand that — thanks to a jar of Cosmic Building Material they found — almost wiped out the galaxy. But just as they envision a future without any more cosmic lunacy:
The Earth has started fluxing in and out of existence, Theo's twin girls are teleporting, and Jason can't tell which version of his life is real.
All because of Milo, the Universe's ultimate gremlin.
Joined by the mysterious Jamie — a down-and-out hotel clerk from Eternity — Jason and Theo reunite on a frantic, cross-country chase across America, praying they can retrieve that jar, circumvent Milo, and save the Earth from irrevocable disaster.
In author Russ Colchamiro’s uproarious sequel to Finders Keepers, he finally confirms what we've long suspected — that there’s no galactic Milo quite like a Genius de Milo.
Interview with Russ Colchamiro
Russ, what’s the story behind the title Genius de Milo?
Sorry, folks, but I don’t kiss and tell. You’ll need to read Genius de Milo to find out that particular secret . . .
Tell us about your series. Is this book a standalone, or do readers need to read the series in order?
My debut novel Finders Keepers is a scifi backpacking comedy . . . think American Pie meets Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It's loosely based on a series of backpacking trips I took through Europe and New Zealand, set against a quest for a jar that contains the Universe's DNA.
My newest book, Genius de Milo, is the second book in the trilogy, where our bumbling backpacking heroes Jason Medley and Theo Barnes are once again tasked with retrieving a radioactive jar filled with the Universe’s DNA … before it wipes out the galaxy.
Genius de Milo (and Finders Keepers) is for fans of authors such as Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, and Christopher Moore, and movies and TV shows such as Harold & Kumar, Bill & Ted, Hot Tub Time Machine, Time Bandits, Quantum Leap, Groundhog Day, Northern Exposure, and Third Rock from the Sun.
And whereas Finders Keepers was set predominantly in Europe and New Zealand, the action in Genius de Milo has shifted mostly to the U.S. And, of course, there's lots going on in Eternity, the 'cosmic' realm where the Universe is created.
So for Genius de Milo, think Midnight Run meets Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
As the second book in the series, I wrote Genius de Milo with the understanding that it needed to work on three levels:
As a satisfying, self-contained novel that new readers can enjoy even if they haven’t read Finders Keepers
As the second novel in the Finders Keepers trilogy that both continues and enhances the overall narrative and individual story arcs
Structurally as a lead-in to the final, upcoming novel that will conclude the trilogy
Who are you?
To most people, I’m a mild-mannered scifi comedy writer, but in truth I'm actually a fugitive from another dimension, with the intergalactic agency in charge of such matters hot on my trail, looking to drag me back to where I’ll face my day of reckoning. All in all I’d rather them not find me, so . . . try to keep it to yourself.
But if you’re referring to my “Earth” life . . . I am a former journalist turned PR guy working in the commercial real estate industry, mostly in New York City.
I’m also married with four-year-old twins, so those little ninjas of mine keep me on my toes. And I have a crazy dog, Simon.
What’s your favorite line from a book?
“Billy Pilgrim has come unstuck in time.” – Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut
How do you get to know your characters?
In the Finders Keepers series, I write each chapter from a specific character’s point of view. I spend a lot time getting into that character’s headspace. What does he think about what’s happening right now? How will she handle herself given the predicament she’s in? I try to embody each character, and then write as if I am that character.
Those who spend enough time around me will sooner or later find me muttering to myself about one thing or another. My daughter busted me just last week. More often than not, I’m working out some dialogue or plot sequence for whatever book I’m writing, asking myself if the pieces add up.
I tend to talk out loud, because I like to "hear" the dialogue. Makes for some interesting rides on the train.
Which character did you most enjoy writing?
Oh, you saucy devil. I can’t play favorites. Think of the drama I’d have to deal with. I love of all my characters equally (wink-wink).
Can't blame a girl for trying. What would your main character say about you?
"I knew you were crazy. I just didn’t realize you were that crazy."
Is your book based on real events?
Even though Finders Keepers and now Genius de Milo both have that authentic you-are-there, on-the-ground feel to them — I like readers to feel like they are experiencing what the characters experience — I pretty much made up all of the backpacking, road trip, and Earth-bound travel scenes.
But all of the scifi shenanigans are totally real and based on my intergalactic, interdimensional experiences across time and space.
That makes sense. Are you like any of your characters?
Jason Medley is definitely based on me. I won’t say how much of how he thinks, feels, and acts is actually me and how much is him, but it’s fair to say that we have a lot in common. When I did my initial backpacking tour through Europe back in 1994 … if I was stranded or lost — which happened to me a few times — I couldn’t Google where to go next, because there was no Google! There was no Internet! There were no modern cell phones.
When Jason was stuck on a train in Romania (in Finders Keepers) . . . that really happened to me. And believe me . . . being feverish, hungry, and alone, with no food or water, in the middle of the night, somewhere in Eastern Europe, with a drunken, mentally ill madman loose on a train is not something you just inherently know how to handle. At least I didn’t. Neither did Jason.
If you could be one of your characters, which one would you choose?
Milo. He’s the Universe’s gremlin, although his motivations might be different than what you initially think. With what five real people would you most like to be stuck in a bookstore?
Albert Einstein, Harry Truman, Kelly Clarkson, and my two kids. What song would you pick to go with your book?
“Sympathy for the Devil” -- The Rolling Stones
Who are your favorite authors?
Christopher Moore, Kurt Vonnegut, David McCullough, and Stephen King.
What book are you currently reading and in what format? The Serpent of Venice by Christopher Moore,in paperback.
Where’s home for you?
West Orange, New Jersey
Where did you grow up?
Merrick, New York – Long Island. And then I spent about 20 years in New York City, split between Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens. A lot of my family is from Brooklyn and Queens, so I feel a connection there.
What dumb things did you do during your college years?
My buddy and I got arrested for third degree burglary. We didn’t actually do it — no, really! I swear! But we were most definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time, which was completely avoidable. We went looking for mischief, but instead found trouble, with a capital T. Good thing I knew how to teleport, or else we might have been in quite a pickle.
Whew! Good thing. Have you been in any natural disasters?
I’ve survived several hurricanes and blizzards, including Gloria, Katrina, and Sandy. And though not a natural disaster, I was on my way to work in Manhattan during 9/11. That was quite a day.
What is the most daring thing you've done?
Had kids!
What is the stupidest thing you've done? And don't say "Had kids."
Got in a car with someone way, way too drunk to drive. Fair to say I’m lucky to be alive.
Totally fair. I hope you learned your lesson, young man. How did you meet your wife? Was it love at first sight?
It’s a comical, yet romantic story I plan to tell in another book. And yes, it actually was love at first sight.
If you could only keep one book, what would it be? Lamb, by Christopher Moore
You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be?
Han Solo
What’s your favorite candy bar?
Snickers. But I’m allergic to peanuts, so I don’t eat them too often.
Try Snickers with almonds. It's much better. If you could live anywhere in the world, where in the world would it be?
San Francisco
What would you like people to say about you after you die?
Good guy who looked out for other people. A little crazy, but a good guy.
What are you working on now?
The third and final book in the first Finders Keepers trilogy.
Book Excerpt from Genius de Milo
Jason’s smile dropped away, replaced with a silent, open-mouthed slug of resignation, that whatever was happening was authentic, and unfolding in real time.
In a shared-brain moment Jason and Theo slowly panned in Jamie’s direction until finally she felt their accusatorial eyes lock on her. And though neither of them spoke, the imputation of blame came through with perfect enunciation: What did you do? What’s coming?
But what could she say? Which cluster of words could encapsulate both the scope and nuance of their predicament? Jamie could offer a pretty good guess as to why their immediate surroundings morphed before their very eyes—it had to be Brigsby-related, didn’t it?—but when it came to the what, she was equally mystified.
So all she could do was stand there. She blinked a few times. Then a few times more. The night went bracingly still, as if every fractal of sound had been drained from the Universe. The three of them held in place, petrified, as if the incredible forces converging upon them were seemingly just to be unleashed. Which, of course, they were.
About the author
Russ Colchamiro is the author of the rollicking space adventure Crossline, the hilarious science fiction backpacking comedy Finders Keepers, and the outrageous sequel Genius de Milo, all with Crazy 8 Press.
Russ lives in West Orange, New Jersey, with his wife, two children, and crazy dog, Simon, who may in fact be an alien himself. Russ is now at work on the final book in the Finders Keepers trilogy.
As a matter of full disclosure, readers should not be surprised if Russ spontaneously teleports in a blast of white light followed by screaming fluorescent color and the feeling of being swallowed by a tornado. It’s just how he gets around.
Russ encourages you to email him at authorduderuss@gmail.com.
Evelyn's heart was getting a little crusty. Blame it on a sleazy boss and an even sleazier ex-boyfriend.
She was settling in for another lonely Saturday night, when a knock on the door interrupted her routine. The guy claimed to be an angel, sent to help fix some of her "relationship issues." But an angel? And not a cute, cuddly little cherub like she had seen on greeting cards, more like a rhino stuffed into blue jeans and work shirt. No, this guy means business.
Evelyn needed a little heavenly help, especially regarding her lack of a love life. And it would take a miracle to straighten out her career. But it turns out she's the one who needs straightening out.
Interview with Timothy Klein
Tim, welcome back to A Blue Million Books. What’s the story behind the title Cries from a Crusty Heart?
My characters came up with it. During their first conversation, Pale mentioned that Evelyn's heart was getting crusty, and the title came from there. Is this book a standalone or do readers need to read the series in order?
This started out has a fun, even silly, little project. It got more serious than I expected and several people have asked about a second book. If that happens, you'd want to read them in order.
I see the book is available on Kindle for $1.18, why such an unusual price?No comment, I'll make you read the book to find out.
If you had an extra $100 a week to spend on yourself, what would you buy?
I'd split it between airplane fuel and camera lenses. I collect vintage lenses and adapt them to my digital cameras. Lenses that cost hundreds back in the seventies can now be had for $20 and some produce amazing images. Of course, others are now collector's items worth thousands.
What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?
With regard to writing: there are no rules. I've read all the rules, and I've read a lot of popular, classic and best sellers, most of them break the rules. If you focus on the rules, you'll end up writing the same bland drivel that everyone else writes. Do you have another job outside of writing?
Unfortunately, yes. We run an engineering design company during the day (and often into the night as well).
How did you meet your wife? Was it love at first sight?
It was "spite" at first sight! My wife was the little brat who ran around with my kid sister. Couldn't stand her! In fact, once I was complaining to my mom about her, (I was about 15; Marlene would have been around 10) and Mom said, "You shouldn't say things like that about her. Things change. You could grow up and marry her." I replied that I'd join a monastery first. Mom was right! Things changed. Besides, I would have been a lousy monk.
If you could only save one thing from your house, what would it be?
The Winchester 22 caliber pump rifle. My father bought it new back in the fifties, and it was the first gun I ever fired. Dad gave it to me several years ago, and it's also the first gun that our kids fired.
What would you like people to say about you after you die?
"Wow, he sure didn't look 107."
Good one! What would your main character say about you?
Evelyn is a little upset about how silly I made her look in the bar scene. She also thinks that I have a breast fetish but recognizes that all men do, so she just ignores it. However, all was forgiven once she got to the end of the story.
How did you create the plot for this book?
I never intended to write a novella like this! It was a dark and stormy night, (really, it was), and I was supposed to be working on the Saga series.
Instead, I was thinking about neighborhood politics and just how upset certain people were with others over trivial matters. There's an old proverb: "If God listened to every shepherd's curse, there would be no sheep." I started wondering what would happen if people knew that God was going to carry out the curses they so casually toss around? The story just started from there.
What’s one pet peeve you have when you read?
I have a very low tolerance for plot holes, and I don't like coincidences. I don't expect every detail to be absolutely perfect and I'm willing to stretch reality a bit, but get the main stuff right. Someone, probably someone famous but I don't remember who, has said, "A coincidence can get your hero into trouble, but never use one to get them out of trouble."
I guess that's two pet peeves.
Do you have a routine for writing?
No. I should have but I don't.
Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?
Almost all my writing is done at my desk in our hangar. Some guys have a model airplane on their desk, I have a full size Cessna 172 next to mine. It actually belongs to a buddy of mine that doesn't have a hangar. I told him he could keep it here as long as he doesn't check the hour meter.
What’s the worst thing someone has said about your writing? How did you deal with it?
We met a freelance editor several years ago who was an acquaintance of a friend of mine. He was working full-time at another job but needed some extra cash. He seemed like a good match and we had him start reviewing the first draft of The Saga of the Ellen Jane. He got through the first third of the book and his comments/edits were, for the most part, very perceptive and helpful. He was reviewing the last third of book, when he asked a question regarding the plot that was explained in the middle of the book. I told him to go back and reread that chapter.
Suddenly, I get an email, (at about 1:00 in the morning), from him telling me that this is the worst book he ever read, that it needs a complete rewrite and he can't work with us anymore! Turns out he even emailed the friend who had introduced us and told him, in even more colorful language, that the book was complete trash.
Lessons learned:
1. Be suspicious of an editor who brags about having over fifty different jobs in the last thirty years. (Not fifty contract gigs, fifty-some different full-time non-editing jobs.) Something isn't right.
2. If a potential editor is pounding down more beers at the party than everyone else combined, something isn't right.
3. If you hire the individual in spite of the warnings listed above and they send insulting and somewhat incoherent comments after clearly not reading the entire book, ignore the bum and move on. This leaves several possibilities:
a. He was toasted when wrote the email.
b. He was toasted while he was reviewing the book, which is why he missed several chapters. Once sober, he realized that he hated it.
c. Most likely, he was toasted the entire time.
In any case, you have just figured out what wasn't right and you now know why he had fifty different jobs... What would your dream office look like?
A larger hangar with my office on the second floor. It would be built in the WWII retro style with a domed roof. My Beech AT-11 (from the Saga series) would be down below. Why did you decide to self-publish?
We started Stearman Press based on the following three Laws of Publishing:
1. Getting a book published by a traditional publishing house is more work than writing the book.
2. It doesn't matter who publishes the book, it is up to the author to promote and market their book.
3. The only people making money in the publishing business today are the publishers.
Are you happy with your decision to self-publish?
It's more work than we expected. When we started, I only envisioned the original The Saga of the Ellen Jane trilogy, so starting a publishing company sounded like fun. However, I now have outlines for at least a dozen other stories and would like to spend time writing, not picking fonts.
If you self-published, what steps to publication did you personally do, and what did you hire someone to do? Is there anyone you’d recommend for a particular service?
Everything except the editing. We have hired professional editors because you really need someone objective to review any work. We've done all the cover art, book design, file generation etc in-house.
What are you working on now?
I'm supposed to be finishing the third book of the Saga series in time for my wife's birthday.
About the author
Timothy Klein was blessed (though he didn't always see it that way at
the time), with a mother and a grandmother that were English teachers.
Even though literature was a major component of his life, he rebelled
against the Grammar Police, focusing on aviation and engineering.
Years
later, while skimming the romance novel his wife was reading, he
remarked, “I can write better stuff than this!” “Well,” she replied. “Go
do it.” So he did. The first result was The Saga of the Ellen Jane. A
World War II adventure/romance series set on the north coast of Brazil.
He hadn't expected to write a novella about love, hate and the
words we use. It just happened. Granted, it skates casually onto some
theologically thin ice, but it will get you thinking. Besides, it's not
the first time he's been called a heretic.
Celebrity Kidnappings, the Kama Sutra, Russian Mobsters, Congolese Shimmer Frogs . . .
Book Club is a time to drink wine, to live vicariously through erotic fiction, and pay lip service to one’s life goals. The club's founder wants to be a writer but can’t find her story. Billie is the virgin mailwoman who doesn’t know if she’s gay or straight. Ashleigh is the beautiful housewife who can’t get pregnant by her philandering husband, and Marissa is the high-powered executive who has sacrificed her own family for a stressful job that makes her miserable.
They meet once a month, updating their dream boards guided by the self-help book du jour, but nothing ever changes. Until Marissa’s mysterious sister arrives and shakes the women into action.
What will it take to make their dreams a reality? The disappearance of People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive, mass abandonment of smart phones, Korean nacho dogs, and some good old fashioned sex.
Book Club is smart, sexy, and endlessly entertaining. A delicious, thought-provoking romp from start to finish. Make it your top book club pick for 2015!
Interview with Jaime Boust
Jaime, what’s the story behind the title Book Club?
The original inspiration was Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk. I loved the idea of a group of women taking extreme measures to feel alive.
Do you have another job outside of writing?
I write all day, five days a week, but my husband says it's time to start earning money. Please help me avoid getting a job by telling all your friends about Book Club! I'm unfit for the outside world.
I hear you! Which character did you most enjoy writing?
Hope is my favorite character to write. She is totally free, and very naughty.
What would your main character say about you?
She would say we have an awful lot in common.
Is your book based on real events?
No, I have never kidnapped a celebrity with the help of the Russian Mafia. Or have I? I'll never tell!
One of your characters has just found out you’re about to kill him off. He/she decides to beat you to the punch. How would he kill you?
A poisoned piece of Round Table Pizza. That would do the job.
Less mess that way. If you could be one of your characters, which one would you choose?
I'd want to be the narrator and founder of Book Club. She's a writer, a mother, and isn't afraid to get her hands dirty in the name of living.
Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.
Billie, the virgin mailwoman who doesn't know if she's gay or straight, decides to hold a walk-a-thon to raise money for a reading with Sonya Fitzpatrick, the world's foremost animal communicator, so she can ask her reptiles if they'd mind being petted by strangers. That part always cracks me up. (By the way, Sonya Fitzpatrick is real and she's AMAZING.)
Who are your favorite authors?
Egad, this question. Virginia Woolf, Loorie Moore, George Saunders, Jennifer Egan, Flannery O'Conner, Ray Bradbury, Don DeLillo, Jeannette Winterson, Anne Carson, Angela Carter . . . help, I can't stop. Okay, I'll stop.
What book are you currently reading and in what format?
Rachel Kushner's The Flamethrowers in ebook. Good stuff.
Do you have a routine for writing?
I write all day, Monday through Friday, rain or shine.
Where’s home for you?
Sunny Pasadena, California, where it never rains.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
In a palazzo on the grand canal.
What are you working on now?
I'm writing my steamy serial Conquest by Steam Bijou, and then I'll start work on a thriller that's been simmering in my noggin for a while.
Excerptfrom Book Club
We sat in her leather-bound great room spreading herbed chèvre onto discs of watermelon radishes, feeling proud of ourselves for having selected a classic of English Literature that still managed to incorporate a great deal of sex. It was gratifying to be able to toss out sophisticated literary references to our lesser-read friends, and we were happy for Connie (Lady Chatterley) to have finally started living in her body once again.
But we were distracted in our discussion by a new presence, who sprawled herself on Marissa’s ice plant velvet chaise smoking marijuana from a vaporizer and listening to every word we spoke in silence. This was Hope, Marissa’s younger sister, whose life was often recounted by Marissa in a half-proud, half-cynical way. She was the baby, the black sheep, the fu*#-up, the zeitgeist of modernity. She wrote poetry on the sidewalk and made experimental films in which she appeared naked and spray-painted silver. She was always in Berlin for a month or partying with Jay Z, busy designing a pop-up gallery, or eating at an underground restaurant. She was sleeping with a dancer, a doorman, and a Habsburg Prince.
Hope had arrived the day before in a mist of unanswered questions filtered from Marissa through Ashleigh to me. Something had happened in New York to make her come here, and her presence in the room was like an ornately filigreed blade. Any genetic kinks that revealed themselves through Marissa’s angular face had been worked out by the time Hope came along. Her looks were striking in the way a crow’s feathers shine blue in the sun. She wore a long curtain of black hair, dyed darker than her natural brunette, which cast her urban untanned skin as a mask of porcelain with piercing cobalt eyes. Something in her presence startled me, but whether it was her face or her scrutinizing silence I wasn’t sure. All the time I stood reading from the selected passage, and all the time afterward that I sat sipping Pinot Gris, professing my respect for Lady Chatterley for taking charge of her life, Hope watched me, watched all of us, as she drew luxurious vapor breaths from her slim gold apparatus.
She was thirty-six, one year younger than I was.
About the author
Jaime Boust is a writer whose work ranges from
literotica to anonymously submitted business plans to her favorite
failing local retailers. Her fiction includes Book Club, Conquest by her
alter ego Steam Bijou, and the forthcoming serial Night Life--a series
about a thirty-something mother who, disillusioned by the monotony of
motherhood, starts a high-end prostitution ring.
Jaime received her
formal education at the University of California at San Diego and her
informal education on the streets of London, the hills of San Francisco,
the sewers of Paris, and the suburban wilds of Oakland. These days
you'll find her dodging traffic in Los Angeles with her husband and two
kids. Many things have been said of her: idea machine, portmanteau
enthusiast, cutthroat croquet player, national champion cheerleader,
world's spiciest cook. Believe them all.
Gunshots echo down an antebellum Charleston alley. Brack Pelton, an ex-racecar driver and Afghanistan War veteran, witnesses the murder of his uncle, Reggie Sails. Darcy Wells, the pretty Palmetto Pulse reporter, investigates Reggie's murder and targets Brack.
The sole heir of his uncle's estate, Brack receives a rundown bar called the Pirate's Cove, a rotting beach house, and one hundred acres of preserved and valuable wetland along the Ashley River. A member of Charleston's wealthiest and oldest families offers Brack four million dollars for the land. All Brack wants is his uncle's killer.
From the sandy beaches of Isle of Palms, through the nineteenth-century mansions lining the historic Battery, to the marshlands surrounding the county, Southern Heat is drenched in the humidity of the lowcountry.
Interview with David Burnsworth
David, how long have you been writing, and how did you start?In answering this question, I used to say since about 2006 when, after telling my wife that I wanted to write a novel, she hounded me to get started. She will always deserve the credit for getting me started on this publication path. But, I loved writing as far back as grade school. I just didn’t think I could actually write a book until my wife told me it was time.
So in this instance, a wife telling you what to do was a good thing. Do you have another job outside of writing?
I sure do. I am an engineer with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tennessee. After graduating from U.T. in ’97, I was fortunate enough to land a job as a manufacturing engineer. I’ve held various positions in manufacturing ever since. Now I help coach people to improve their jobs both for them and the company. And I love what I’m doing now almost as much as I love writing. How would you describe your book in five words?
Southern noir in the lowcountry.
How did you create the plot for this book?
Trial and error. It took me a while to get the characters. Once I got them, they took over and wrote the book. I just had to keep up with the typing.
How do you get to know your characters?
I spend a lot of time with them, even when I’m not at the keyboard. Sometimes they are in my head when I need to focus on other things.
Which character did you most enjoy writing?
It would be hard to choose between them. The main ones, Brack, Brother Thomas, Darcy, Shelby, and Mutt are favorites. But then I enjoy the minor characters as well. The police detectives that Brack has to interact with. The other women Brack crosses paths with. It is so much fun pouring them all into a soup pot, stirring them up, and seeing what comes out. If you could be one of your characters, which one would you choose?
Brack Pelton, my protagonist. In some regards, he’s got a few of my bad traits at amped-up levels. Like overreaction and an uncontrolled mouth. My tongue is not as tame as I’d like it to be, while his has never seen a leash. But, he’s the hero, albeit a dark one.
Who are your favorite authors?
I love James Lee Burke, Lee Child, John Sanford, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Michael Connelly, Elmore Leonard, Walter Mosley, Susan Boyer, and C.J. Box.
How long is your to-be-read pile?
Longer than I have time to read as long as I have a day job! You get to decide who would read your audiobook. Who would you choose?
Very good question. The obvious choices are Dick Hill and Will Patton. Those guys are phenomenal. But I think Billy Bob Thorton would be a very interesting choice. There are so many people with great voices out there. I know when the timing is right, the perfect one will be there.
What book are you currently reading and in what format?
Normally, I have a few books going on at once. I’ll start with the bible. I perpetually read a chapter most days. Next is usually a mystery or thriller, or history; one in print or ebook and one on audio in the car. Right now, I have Alex Berenson’s Twelve Days rolling in the car, and I’m reading K.M. Rockwood’s Brothers In Crime ebook. She and I will be on a panel together at Malice Domestic this year.
Cool. Do you have a routine for writing?
Not really. I try to get in some time before work in the morning, and then in the evenings after my trip to the gym. And of course Saturdays and Sundays. Anywhere from five to fifteen hours a week.
When and where do you prefer to do your writing?
I have an office at home that my wife avoids because it isn’t the neatest. My desk faces the street in front of our house which, during daylight hours, provides enough of a distraction when I need it, yet isn’t so active that I can’t focus when I’m ready to resume. I’ve written in hotel rooms and airplanes and airports. When it comes crunch time, there isn’t anywhere I’ve found I can’t write.
Where’s home for you?
Boiling Springs, South Carolina. It is peaceful here and the cost of living is reasonable. Both my wife and I work in the area so that is why we are here.
Tell us one weird thing, one nice thing, and one fact about where you live.
In the winter season, Spartanburg has an ice rink in the downtown area. I’d call that both weird and nice. We live by two battlefields: Cowpens, a civil war battlefield, and Kings Mountain, a revolutionary battlefield. I love the history of the Carolinas.
Your last meal would be . . .
Oreos
I like the way you think. Would you rather work in a library or a bookstore?
Library, for sure. The access to just about anything is so much greater.
You won the lottery. What is the first thing you would buy?
My wife’s and my dream home.
You’re given the day off, and you can do anything but write. What would you do?
Daydream about my next book. I’d get things mapped out in my head. One of my bad habits as a child has paid off in my adult years. I have a pretty active imagination. That’s how I form some of my scenes now anyway. You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be?
Wow! What a question. Mad Max comes to mind. Something about driving fast cars and running down rogue bikers. Gotta love that. What would your dream office look like?A lot like the one I currently have, except maybe room for a couch and more bookshelves. And a view of nature or a body of water would also be nice. For the most part I am a simple person. I have a nice long desk that seems to perpetually be cluttered with things needing attention. But my laptop is front and center, where it needs to be. Everything in the room revolves around it, from the view out the windows to the speakers from my late-eighties stereo. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Patty and I love to travel for vacation. New England is a favorite area. This year we are heading to Jackson Hole. We are so excited about seeing Yellowstone! I also am a car buff, but I seem to be in a transition more to classic cars than new ones. Could be my age. Another passion is music. Listening to, not playing it. I love eighties music the best, but the University of Tennessee has a great jazz program and Knoxville has a great jazz scene. When I was in college, I spent many a night with my friends in one or more of the jazz clubs there. Some of those nights I actually remember, too. What are you working on now?
I’m finishing up the third book in the Brack Pelton series and thinking about the fourth. The names are a secret right now.
About the author
David Burnsworth became fascinated with the Deep South at a young age.
After a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of
Tennessee and fifteen years in the corporate world, he made the decision
to write a novel. Southern Heat is his first mystery and Burning Heat
will be out October 21, 2015. Having lived in Charleston on Sullivan’s
Island for five years, the setting was a foregone conclusion. He and his
wife along with their dog call South Carolina home.
.jpg)
