Interview with Brenda Huber

I'm interviewing a wonderful and talented author today. Brenda Huber's debut release, Mine, is out today from The Wild Rose Press. This full length Vampire romance is sooooo very worth your time. But I'll get on to my take on this story in a minute.

Welcome to my blog, Brenda. I'm gonna ask ya a few questions and then give ya time to tell us about your new release.

Okay... I gotta know why... Why Vampires? Have you always wanted to write them or are you a Twilight junkie?

My interest in Vampire stories started long before I picked up my first copy of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga, actually. (But Twilight is at the top of my list of 'must-reads', hands down.) I've always sort of thought Vampire held a certain appeal. Sort of the ultimate bad-boy, where the process of finding the tiny kernel of humanity buried deep inside him was the biggest challenge...and the whole immortal thing sort of takes commitment and devotion and 'soul mate' to a whole other level.

I love the whole 'soul mate' gig.

Okay... for fun, Spike or Angel?

Spike...DEFINATELY Spike! lol. Talk about wowza!

See, I'm more of an Angel girl. Both are yummy in their own ways.

What do you love about writing... and what do you like the least?

Hmm...That's actually more difficult for me to answer than I realized. What I love...I love it when my characters take on a life of their own, they develop all these destinctive characteristics until they feel almost like real people to me. I love it when I can catch a glimpse of something (usually something mundane that you wouldn't even look twice at...for example, I was calling up a playlist of music videos--I like to listen to music as I write--and I caught a flash of a sexy bassist stepping up to the mike and the lighting flashed red, and I thought to myself, "wow, now he'd make a smokin' hot vampire"...and Mine was born). It's like...suddenly an idea pops into my head, and I find myself thinking...What if?...and then the story just starts pouring out.

What I hate...Synopsis. Hands down. Trying to sum a 350 page book up into 5 pages or less is my own personal torture. I'm too long-winded. For me, writing the synopsis for a book is more difficult that writing the actual book!

Amen, sister. Synopsis writing ugh! Funny, I know a few editors that hate reading them, but alas they are necessary for some publishers and therefore we need to do our best to write them in order to sell our books.

Tell us a little about Mine.

Blurb:

Becoming the object of obsession can be deadly…

Brilliant songwriter, Alexandra Sinclair, swore she’d never return to the predator-filled music industry. Yet when her life takes an unexpected tale-spin, Alex finds herself neck deep in the business once more. Unwittingly entangled in a world where mythological creatures of the night walk amongst mankind, she becomes the target of an Immortal serial killer bent on exposing the darkest secret of the one man she can’t resist.

In a world where Vampyre hide in plain sight…

Ancient Vampyre, Cole Gunnerrson—lead singer for the mega-popular rock band, Stolen Innocence, and reluctant recruit for the Vampyre Task Force—must identify and neutralize a Rogue targeting the music industry. With single-minded determination, Cole decides Alex is the exact lyricist he needs to maintain his cover, and the only female he wants in his bed. When the elusive killer turns his focus on Alex, Cole must face the truth. He’s lost his Immortal heart to a Mortal female. Now Cole’s engaged in the deadliest battle of his life. Will he decipher the killer’s bizarre message in time? Can he save Alex before she becomes the next in a long line of innocent victims?

Excerpt:

His hands were hard and strong—rough and impatient—as he crushed her to him. Desire rode roughshod over him, raw and insatiable, taunting him to ravish, driving him to ravage. The deep, dark voice in the back of his mind urged him onward, urged him to take all she offered, and give her more in return then she’d bargained for.

That voice of midnight urged him to give her forever.

Cole wrestled with the very idea, torn for the first time in his long life by the one thing he’d never before considered doing to another living creature. He hadn’t been given a choice when he’d been turned. He’d never sired another Vampyre, and always swore he never would.
Yet right now, the very thought of spending the rest of eternity in this woman’s arms was enough to render his personal morals inconsequential…enough to render her own wishes on the matter—her very ability to make the choice for herself—insignificant.

Fated mate or Vampyre. Either way, he’d be able to keep her forever. His Bride.

She moaned, the sound of his name on her lips drove all thought—what little of reason he’d managed to retain—from his mind. His fingers fisted in her hair, ruthlessly pulling her head back to expose the sweet flesh of her neck. His eyes glowed, dilated, focusing on the erratic throb of her pulse. His mouth opened wide in anticipation of the ambrosia he’d soon be savoring. His fangs stretched, long and lethal, demanding as they descended toward her flesh.

... excuse me, I need to turn on the AC! Hot, Brenda... really HOT!

What else do you have coming?

I'm very excited to announce that I will have TWO new titles with The Wild Rose Press in July 2010. July 16, Texas Dawn will be released. Texas Dawn is a Historical Romance with the Cactus Rose line. And then, July 23rd, Shadows will be released. Shadows is another Paranormal Romance (a Werewolf novel this time) with the Black Rose line of The Wild Rose Press. I will also drop a hint that one of the secondary characters in Mine could possibly be seeing his own storyline coming soon as well!

I wish you all the best with all your releases. I have to tell all the readers here today that if you like the vampire genre you're going to LOVE this book. The scene where Cole and Alex first lay eyes on each other snaps on the page and doesn't let you go until the very end. Trust me when I say you don't want to miss this book!

Step on over to The Wild Rose Press by clicking HERE and download your copy today!

Thanks again for coming, Brenda.

And the winner is...

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to support Shelley Munro and her latest and greatest release, Make That Man Mine. As promised she is giving away one free download of her book to one luck winner.

After putting all your names into a very nice Longaberger basket, I went down stairs to where my ten year old was playing the Wii and asked him to pick a name. He rolled his cute little eyes at me, quickly drew one name and then promptly shooed me out of the room so he could continue his game.

The name he picked was... drum roll please....

~~~~RACHEL~~~~

Rachel, let me know which e-mail addy to send to Shelley so you can claim your prize.

Congrats and thanks again everyone for stoppin' by.

Guest Interview with Shelley Munro

Today I have a special guest, Shelley Munro. Author or so many books in my own personal library that I just had to have her over to celebrate her newest release.

Thanks for stopping by today, Shelley. Oh, and for all who comment, Shelley will be giving away a free copy of her release. So tell your friends and yack, yack, yack...

Tell us about your new book out now:

Thanks for inviting me to visit today, Catherine. Make That Man Mine is my new release, and it’s out at Ellora’s Cave on 15 June. Funnily enough it’s a story featuring one of my favorite type of heroes—a shifter. Jack Sullivan is a taniwha. Most of you probably haven’t heard of a taniwha before, but it’s a creature from Maori mythology, a kind of a serpent/dragon. In some tales, a taniwha is a terrible wife-stealing creature who eats people and breaks canoes. In other tales, a taniwha is a benevolent creature who brings good luck to a tribe. Legend says that a taniwha lives at every bend in a river. They also live in lakes and by the seaside.

My taniwha Jack Sullivan works for George Taniwha & Sons, a private investigator. Secretary Emma Montrose has lusted after Jack from afar for a long time, and she’s finally decided it’s time to make him aware of her interest. Jack is one alpha man who is about to meet his match!

Here’s the blurb:

On her 25th birthday Emma Montrose decides it’s time to show bad boy investigator, Jack Sullivan she’s more than an efficient secretary. She’s a woman with needs, and she wants him.
Jack is a taniwha, a shifter, who requires women to satiate the sexual demands of the serpent within. Nothing more. Then work forces the reluctant Jack and ecstatic Emma undercover as a couple. Thrown together, pretence and reality blur generating hot sex laced with risk…

And here’s a short except from the start of the book where his boss informs Jack he’s going to have a new partner for his upcoming case.

“Okay,” he conceded. “I guess a partner might help. Who’s available? Hone? Billy?”
George made a choking sound, merriment dancing across his lined face as he stuck his feet up on his desk.

“What’s so goddamn amusing?” Jack ground out. Another chortle exploded from George.

Jack bounded upright and paced the length of the room, trying to work off the agitation that thrummed through his body. He paused to stare out the window, his mind taking in the yachts that zigzagged across blue waters of Auckland Harbor. Jack turned away from the window and stalked across the room to drop into the chair opposite George. He kept his expression neutral despite the amusement that still simmered across his boss’s face. “You’d better let me in on the joke.”

“You can partner up with Hone or Billy, if you want,” George said. “But you might want to consider the special circumstances.”
“What circumstances?” Jack bit out. Man, he had a hot date with Melissa tonight. Good, hot, sweaty, no-strings sex. He didn’t have time for this crap. “Either Hone or Billy. I’m not fussy.”

“Reuben J. Mahoney runs a couples-only resort. I’m assigning you a female partner.”

“A female— No.”

“I guess you can take Hone. Or Billy,” George mused. “Of course, you’d have to share a room. And a bed.” He shook his grizzled head. “Two taniwha in the same room. Add in a blue moon and things might get a mite ugly.”

Fuck. Jack sent a hard glare at his boss. Trapped as neat as an eel in a net. Jack shuffled through the range of possibilities and came up blank. “Who is she?” he gritted out.

“A new operative.”

Great. Just bloody great. Not only was he being forced to take a female partner, he was getting a raw beginner. Jack didn’t trust himself to speak so he firmed his mouth, folded his arms across his chest and scowled his displeasure.

“I’m teaming you with Emma Montrose.”

“Your secretary?” Jack heard disbelief in his voice but thought he managed to keep his panic to himself. What the hell did a secretary know about investigating a case? What about the danger? To both of them. They would have to share a room for God’s sake. Jack refused to let his mind dwell on Emma’s sexy legs…or the rest of her body.

“Emma’s capable of assisting you on this case.”

“Assign me another case.” Spending time alone with Emma was enough to give a man ideas. Jack wasn’t interested in anything but sex. No relationships for him. Been there. Done that. Chucked away the T-shirt.

How do you respond when someone says.... "Oh, you write THAT kind of book?"

Um…I usually think up a great response about four hours later! Actually I’m fairly open about the type of book I write. I don’t fit the profile of a person who writes THAT kind of book, not the one that most people have in their heads at any rate, and they usually stare at me in stunned shock when I tell them I write erotic romance.

I did hear about one woman who went around telling everyone that I wrote porn. One of my writer friends knew her and told the woman that she also wrote romance. The woman then insulted my friend and sneered about Mills & Boon stories. Sometimes you just can’t win and it’s best to just laugh off the comments. I mean I make money writing THAT kind of book. I’m happy, and that’s all that counts.

What are your goals as a writer?

I want to keep learning and trying new things, challenging myself to improve my writing. I want to keep enjoying the process and definitely don’t want to get to the stage of burnout where the writing is forced and becomes a chore. Like most writers, I’d like to sell more books and gain a larger audience, but my main goal is to continue enjoying what I do without the stress of too many deadlines.

How many books do you read a month?

It depends on my writing schedule. If I’m busy with writing, my reading suffers, although I always read before I go to sleep at night. That said I usually read ten – twenty books a month. I read a lot because I think it’s one of the best ways of research for a writer and also for keeping up with the market.

Do you have anything new in the works?

Always! I have more books in my Middlemarch Mates series underway. Ambar’s story (a new character introduced in CatNap) and the twins’ story, which readers have been demanding for ages. I also have a paranormal/sci-fi book I’ve just subbed to my editor, a historical underway and the glimmer of a contemporary series in my head, ready to pour out. I always have more ideas than time. A good way to be, I think!

Where can we find you?

I have a website with details of my available titles, upcoming ones plus excerpts, story background info and also some free reads. http://www.shelleymunro.com/ You can also find my blog there. I blog most days about totally random things—some pertaining to writing and others not—and you’re very welcome to come over and chat. http://www.shelleymunro.com/blog
I can also be found over at the Coffee Time forum http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=508 and at MySpace. http://www.myspace.com/shelleymunro

Where can we find your books?

I write for Ellora’s Cave and for Samhain Publishing. Several of my books are available in print and are available from the usual online sources such as Amazon.
http://www.jasminejade.com/m-127-shelley-munro.aspx
http://samhainpublishing.com/authors/shelley-munro

If you have any questions about writing or my books, please feel free to ask. I’d also like to give away a download of Make That Man Mine to one commenter. I’ll get Catherine to choose the winner for me tomorrow. Thanks for visiting!

Shelley
http://www.shelleymunro.com/

Thanks for coming, Shelley. I can't wait to sink my teeth, or eyes, into this one.