Friday Friend - Chrys Fey

Today Debra welcomes fellow TWRP author Chrys Fey to Heroines with Hearts.

Hello, lovely readers of Heroines with Heart! Chrys Fey here. Today, I want to talk to you about heart break and my newest release, 30 Seconds. First, I want to share a little snippet with you:

“Why’d you leave?” (Blake)
“Because I wanted to.” (Dani)
He shook his head. “That’s not good enough.”
“Because I had to,” she shouted. “Damn it, Blake, I love you. I’ve loved you since you made me that damned grilled cheese sandwich. I can’t be near you anymore knowing my feelings mean nothing to you, that there will never be anything between us, that the love I feel for you is worthless. It took me thirty seconds to fall in love with you, and it only took thirty seconds for me to realize you didn’t love me back!”

This is the most emotional quote by my heroine, Dani Hart, in 30 Seconds. In this scene she’s faced with the realization that the hero, Blake Herro, doesn’t love her and only sees her as a victim of the Mob who needs protection. Her heart is broken and she longs to leave, to escape the hurt and forget Blake exists.

To write this scene, I thought about what I would say to Blake if I were in Dani’s shoes, and how I’d feel. Heart break is a feeling we can all identify with whether inflicted by family and friends, or lovers. I gathered all of my past heart break and let my heart speak for Dani. And of course I had to work the meaning of the title into her declaration. Not only does 30 Seconds reference the continuous danger but also how quickly love can strike.

What would you say to someone who broke your heart?

Blurb:
When Officer Blake Herro agreed to go undercover in the Mob, he thought he understood the risks. But he's made mistakes and now an innocent woman has become their target. He's determined to protect her at all costs.

The Mob's death threat turns Dr. Dani Hart's life upside down, but there is one danger she doesn’t anticipate. As she's dodging bullets, she's falling in love with Blake. With danger all around them, will she and Blake survive and have a happy ending, or will the Mob make good on their threat?

Book Links:
The Wild Rose Press: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=5801
NOOK: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/30-seconds-chrys-fey/1120324958?ean=2940150711938
KOBO: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/30-seconds-1
Amazon US: http://amzn.com/B00N26EU9G
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00N26EU9G
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22591698-30-seconds

Bio:
Chrys Fey is a lover of rock music just like Dani Hart in 30 Seconds. Whenever she's writing at her desk, headphones are always emitting the sounds of her musical muses -especially that of her favorite band, 30 Seconds to Mars, the inspiration behind the title.

30 Seconds is her second eBook with The Wild Rose Press. Her debut, Hurricane Crimes, is also available on Amazon.




Discover her writing tips on her blog, and connect with her on Facebook. She loves to get to know her readers!

Author Links:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chrysfey
Blog: www.writewithfey.blogspot.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/ChrysFey

Say Hello to Friday Friend, Jessica Lauryn

My NJRW friend, Jessica Lauryn, is visiting us once again. She has a new book out and is talking to us about writing a series.

A great book can do wonders for the soul. It’s there for you when you need a friend, or a distraction. It can serve as an escape, or a fantasy in which to indulge. Books comfort us, and they take us to places and times we’d otherwise never know. There’s only one thing I love more than a great book. That is, a great series. 

When I was an adolescent, I loved reading Francine Pascal’s Sweet Valley High. Twin sisters Jessica and Elizabeth served as the perfect contrast to one another. One is introverted, smart, and studious, while the other is the life of the party. At the age of 12, I had no idea why I was so drawn to the duo, other than the obvious fact that I wanted to be living the life of a teenage girl myself. But looking back, I realize the draw actually stemmed from something much deeper than that. 

Series writing can take on a life of its own. In a romance series, the author creates her very own world. She starts with a setting: a time, a place in which her characters will exist in. Then, she gets to work building. Hero and heroine’s story is told in book 1. And in book 2, a new couple typically takes center stage. I think the most exciting part of doing this, for me, the author, is figuring out how I will connect the characters from one book to the next. They don’t necessarily need to know one another, but I’ve found it can be a lot more fun when they do. Writing a series is very different from writing a stand-along book because you have a lot more time and space to play around with. You (the reader) get to see how a family, a group of friends, maybe even an entire town affects the lives of the people around them, possibly for years to come. 

My debut series, The Pinnacles of Power, was never supposed to be a series. While I was writing what eventually became my second release, Dangerous Proposal, I was creating what I intended to be the one and only book of its kind. I was, as writers do, spending hours inside the characters’ heads, trying to get to know them. Something I wasn’t expecting struck me while I was doing this. That was, there were several characters in the story besides my hero and heroine who had a story to tell. I already had a setting I loved (several settings, actually), and I had characters who had the potential to become couples, lovers, and soul-mates. They were screaming for me to tell their stories, and so I began doing just that. Barely realizing what I was doing, a series was soon born. 

Reading book 1 in a series may not feel much different than reading a stand-alone novel. Doing so, you’ll discover a plot, characters, conflict, and, as is the way with romance novels, a happily ever after. The real fun (at least, for me) comes in book 2, when you already know something about the authors’ world. In books 3 and 4, you know even more, and you’re likely to recognize the main characters as well. You may feel as though you sort-of know them as people, and the setting and time have become all-too familiar to you. This is when your imagination can really take over, because you can completely immerse yourself in the author’s fantasy world—the greatest thing a reader can experience! 

I love books. But given the choice, I prefer that they be part of a series. The imagination is one of the greatest things in existence. And I find it easier to put that machine to use when there is a world of stories and characters crafted and bound for my reading enjoyment! 

Blurb for Dangerous Secret:

Abigail MacKenzie has been trying to put her father’s tragic death behind her.  Set on becoming a teacher, Abigail wants nothing more than to forge a new, happy life.  But when a handsome stranger produces a random clue about her father’s shooting, hopes of finding her father’s killer come flooding back to the surface.  Abigail is determined to get justice for her Dad, even if it means learning the dangerous secret of a man with a will of steel and eyes that cut straight through the wall around her heart.

After making a reckless mistake and a mysterious discovery that cost him his job, medical student Ryan Newberry is happy to accept and position he can get.  But when he realizes that one of the employees who’ll be working under him at the Washington Valley Hotel is Abigail MacKenzie, the sweet, pretty girl he met weeks before, he fears the past might be in danger of repeating itself.  As one discovery leads to another, Ryan quickly realizes that he is sitting on a network of criminal activity.  In spite of the risks, he must keep Abigail safe from the surrounding threats.  He only hopes that his desires for his new front desk associate won’t lead both of them down a path of danger from which he won’t be able to protect them.

Excerpt for Dangerous Secret:

Abigail’s heart pounded as she stared at the metal object lying in the middle of the blanket. As many suspicions as she had about Ryan, she’d never really believed he was the killer. Aside from the fact that it would devastate her, it didn’t make sense for him to have murdered anyone. Her father’s shooter had left him for dead. Ryan had lost his mind because he’d thought she’d broken her arm.

She looked into Ryan’s eyes—eyes that were looking directly at hers. As bad as his having a gun looked, as bad as everything she’d surmised about him seemed, something inside her was telling her to believe in his innocence. She was sure she ought to be committed for even thinking that way. But she just couldn’t believe that this guy she’d come to know and even care about could be a killer.

Could she?

“Shouldn't you be calling the cops?” Ryan asked.

“I—”Abigail hesitated. Hardly believing her own naivete, because she was certain that she was being very naïve, she said, “I’m not calling the cops. I don’t know why, but I believe you. At least, I can’t be sure enough that you did anything criminal without more definitive proof.”

The warmth in his eyes shot straight to her aching core. “Thank you.”

Abigail smiled briefly. As though it were someone else saying the words, she went on, “I like you, Ryan. I’m sure you know that I do, but”—emotion spilled into her voice—“I can’t do this anymore. It’s dangerous, and…” She took a centering breath. “Just because I might believe in you, doesn't mean that you believe in me. So once I walk out that door, I don’t think that we should be alone like this again.”

Ryan nodded. Walking toward her, he wrapped his arms tenaciously around her body. His warm mouth coming against her ear, he said, “That doesn't mean we can’t be together tonight.”

A sensation of candescence spread through Abigail’s body. After months of fighting, she was sure Ryan had been doing everything he could to push her away. But here he was, standing beside her in a dark room, making her weak with the very sound of his words. A man she’d just discovered with a loaded gun—she was about to trust him with everything she had.

She trembled as Ryan inched closer. He took her hands and laid them against the center of his chest, just where they’d been before they pulled apart. She didn’t know what he intended, only knew that she wanted whatever it was like a desire she didn’t dared to dream.

Weary of the look in his eye, which indicated he wanted more than just to hold her, she said, “I don’t know, Ryan. After everything that’s happened, all the doubts and suspicion I’ve been carrying, and now this.” Looking from the gun on the bed to his twinkling blue gaze, she said, “I’m just not sure.”

He tightened his grip on her hands. “I know you’re not sure if you can trust me. I’ve never given you any reason to trust me. But if you knew how much I want you, how much I’ve wanted you since the beginning, Abigail…” He shook his head. “One night. That’s all I’m asking for. Just give me this one night. And I’ll make all of your dreams come true.”

Warmth shimmied over Abigail’s skin like melted butter. He was serious, and the look in his eyes confirmed that he meant what he was saying. Until just five minutes ago, she’d thought Ryan Newberry couldn’t stand her, that his only agenda where she was concerned was keeping her out of his hair. But the way he was looking at her, passion burning like wildfire in his eyes, all common sense seemed to escape her.

She perched on her toes as Ryan leaned in. Her eyes fell closed as his warms lips surrounded hers.

Author Links:

Website: http://www.jessicalauryn.com

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Jessica-Lauryn/e/B009YG9CD2

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/jessica-lauryn

Siren BookStrand: http://www.bookstrand.com/jessica-lauryn

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-Lauryn/245896705433424

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5081732.Jessica_Lauryn

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/117124426880360830802/posts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessicaLauryn_

Friday Friend Brenda Margriet

I'm excited to welcome a new TWRP author to Heroines with Hearts today! Please help me give Brenda Margriet a warm welcome!

I'm not a sporty person. I recognize the value of physical activity in order to be healthy, but, let's be honest – it's way more fun to curl up on the couch with a new book and a snack.

I've come to realize I approach physical activity much like I approach my writing, in both action and attitude.

1. Over the years I've swam, jogged and worked out at gyms. Usually things are good for a few months, maybe even a year. And then I fall off the band wagon, and months and years go by as I promise myself that “next week” I'll get back at it. Same thing with writing. My first manuscript took more than ten years to complete. I would work on it for weeks, then something would happen and I wouldn't touch it again for months.
2. I much prefer to “have gone” to the gym than to get up and go. Same with my writing. I love it when I reach my daily goal. But getting those first few words on the page can be a challenge.
3. Getting into a routine is difficult. Falling out of a routine is easy. I try to write every day, and get to the gym three times a week.
4. Flexibility is important. The days I get to the gym vary each week, depending on the family's schedule. But I still go three times a week. And while I want to write every day, the reason I set that goal is so that, if life gets in the way and I can't write one or two days that week, I still have at least five productive sessions.
5. Some days, it's just not going to be easy. There are times at the gym when I think I'm going to die if I take one more step. And then there are times when my alloted minutes fly by. Same with my writing. It is vital to recognize the effort alone is worth it, even if you don't achieve everything you set out to that day.
6. Always keep the end in sight, but remember it takes a while to get there. During my jogging phase, I found a “learn to run 5K” program online. When I started, running for 1 minute would floor me. By the end of 3 months, I was able to keep moving (albeit slowly) through the whole 5K. Same thing with that first manuscript. Once I started working on it consistently, and didn't let anything sidetrack me, I had it done in a few months. My second manuscript took only 6 months to complete. Every day I write, every day I work out, contributes to the bigger picture.

Whether it is working out or writing, it is always fantastic when you can achieve your goals. That manuscript that took me more than 10 years to complete? It became MOUNTAIN FIRE, which was released January 9 by the Wild Rose Press. Maybe I should start training for a marathon...



Synopsis:

A mountaintop mystery leads two conservationists to dangerous obsessions and violent passions.

Natural resources student June Brandt climbs Longworth Mountain for some alone time. But when Conservation Officer Alex Weaver arrives to look into the death of a grizzly bear, June is caught up in the investigation--and fascinated by Alex.

Alex is attracted by June's competence and coolness under fire--as well as her lithe body and honey-blonde hair. Although their mutual interest in protecting the natural wonders of the area brings them together, they soon realize they view love from very different angles. He offers passion and pleasure, but June wants more.

When one of Alex's colleagues is murdered, June and Alex must work together to find the poacher before other lives are lost. And Alex must look deep inside to discover if he can give June what she deserves.

For an excerpt and to find out where to purchase MOUNTAIN FIRE in digital or print formats, visit www.brendamargriet.com. You'll also be able to subscribe to my blog, or follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Thanks so much for joining us today, Brenda! I wish you many sales and much success with Mountain Fire.