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What's the story behind the story? What inspired you to write Swoon?

Swoon is a complete standalone with no reading required. That said, the hero is a character who’s been a beloved side character in several books, and my readers have been literally begging me to give him a story of his own.

What's your favorite scene from your new release, Swoon?

It’s so hard to pick, but one of my favorite scenes is where the heroine gives the hero the most epic (and well deserved) ass-chewing in the history of time. It’s lengthy and honest and spot-on and rocks his world.

If you had to write a blurb for the last book you read, what would it say?

Dave Grohl is a living legend, an incredible human, and a fantastic storyteller. (Storyteller, by Dave Grohl)

What romantic couple from literature makes you swoon? Which one is over-hyped? 

The one that makes me swoon like none other is one a whole lot of other people would surely pick, as well: Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett. I cannot get enough of these two and swoon, swoon, swoon even thinking about them. Some would say they’re overhyped, perhaps, but I would reply that’s impossible.

What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

My favorite genres to read are memoirs, psychological thrillers, and of course romance. With memoirs, I love the deep honesty, self-reflection, storytelling, and humanity implicit in the genre. With thrillers, I love the twists and turns and the element of surprise. And with romance, I love the love story and happy ending. I don’t read in
my genre while writing. But I love devouring romances in between books.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.) Where did you write Swoon? (your couch, a coffee shop, a bar... hey - we won't judge)

I am very boring these days. I write in my office, at a desk, with a fresh water bottle and fresh flowers in a vase.

What's the best advice you've ever received?

It’s cliche, I know, but I read a Plato quote that said (I’m paraphrasing here) there are two things you should NEVER be angry (or anxious) about: a) that which you cannot control, because if you can’t control it, why worry? And b) that which you CAN control, because if you CAN control it, why worry? It really put things into perspective for me. I’m not a huge worrier, anyway, but it made me realize it’s best to put your head down, do the work, and not worry about what comes next, good or bad, if at all possible.

Lauren Rowe is the author of the new book Swoon

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What's the story behind the story? What inspired you to write The Worst Best Friend?

I adore small towns and everything about two best friends falling hopelessly in love. This book is all that and then some, and it's also the fourth in my Knights of Dallas series (but you can read it as a standalone). The only thing better than whipping up one small-town romance book is a whole series of novels. Four books in, Dallas, North Dakota feels like a magical place where the love is hard fought, the nights are steamy, and there's also a few four-legged (or feathered) mischief makers around to lend a hand.

There's no denying the themes in this book are also everything dear to my heart. Impossible crushes, feisty banter, a dash of mystery-suspense, and all the best feels in a place that's always like coming home.

What's your favorite scene from your new release, The Worst Best Friend?

Weston's letters. No contest. They're a vulnerable, naked glimpse into one man's battered heart and his rock-solid faith in a love he didn't think he was worthy of. The letters bring things around full circle when our leads are finally ready to map out a deep, abiding love.

Oh, and honorable mention for all the scenes with Hercules the super pig. That adorable oinker stole my heart and kept it every time I put him on page. Every Dallas book has two heroes, one from the animal kingdom, and this boy definitely qualifies.

If you had to write a blurb for the last book you read, what would it say?

“Hi, I'm dark and achingly intense and so well written you won't even mind if I'm ripping your heart out.” The book was Malice by Coralee June. Definitely darker than my own books, but I loved it and enjoyed reading beyond my own romance tropes.

What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

I'm solidly in romance these days for reading and writing, but I do love to mix it up and step outside the genre. I still dip into horror, thrillers, and historical fiction. Well written family saga tearjerkers slay me every time. Kristen Hannah obliterated my heart with The Great Alone.

I'm not in the business of handing out authorly advice, but I think it's important for anyone who throws words around to get outside their comfort zone. Read the slasher fic or thousand page fantasy novel. Admire what's different about those books vs. what you're trying to do. Learn where you can. And most importantly, enjoy.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.) Where did you write The Worst Best Friend? (your couch, a coffee shop, a bar... hey - we won't judge)

I'm extremely boring and vanilla when it comes to work. I plod away with reasonable word counts and daily revisions while carving out time for the other two bajillion things indie publishing involves. If I've learned anything useful, it's to set reasonable goals, rather than stressing over inhuman deadlines or pulling an eighteen hour day that leaves me dragging for a whole week.

What's the best advice you've ever received?

Do not add oil to the pasta water. Ever.

Nicole Snow is the author of the new book The Worst Best Friend

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What's the story behind the story? What inspired you to write A Sense of Danger?

I’ve always loved spy stories because they usually feature a little bit of everything—action, adventure, danger, and romance. I love putting all those elements in my own books, so writing a spy story seemed like a natural fit. I’ve enjoyed putting my own twist on the spy genre and adding some magical/paranormal elements to the characters/story. 

If you woke up in the world of A Sense of Danger, what is the first thing you would do?

It would be fun to explore the secret headquarters of Section 47, my magical spy agency.

What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

I love reading all kinds of books, and my favorite genres to read are fantasy, romance, YA, spy thrillers, and anything (books, comics, etc.) with superheroes.

Fantasy is my favorite genre to write in, simply because the possibilities are endless when it comes to the types of characters/creatures, worldbuilding, and magic systems that you can write about. 

What fictional world would you most like to visit?

The Marvel Cinematic Universe. I love the Marvel superhero movies and TV shows, and I think it would be a cool place to visit.

What book did you expect to hate, but ended up loving?

Back in college, I took a detective fiction class, and I decided to read Bank Shot by Donald E. Westlake as part of the class. I had never read Westlake before, so I didn’t have any expectations about the book, but I absolutely loved it. Bank Shot is part of Westlake’s Dortmunder comic crime caper series about a group of thieves, and it is one of my all-time favorite book series.

What's your favorite thing about writing? What's your least favorite thing about it? 

My favorite thing is when I finish writing a book. It’s always a great feeling of accomplishment to know that I’ve written something that folks will hopefully read and enjoy. 

However, I do get tired of reading – and re-reading – my own books. Authors have to re-read their own books for revisions, copyedits, and page proofs, and after a while, it can get a little tedious.  

What scene in A Sense of Danger was your favorite to write?

I always love writing action and fight scenes and coming up with ways for my heroine/hero to defeat the villains. So some of my favorite scenes in A Sense of Danger are when Charlotte Locke and Desmond Percy finally face off with some villains near the end of the book.  

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

I love the quote from the movie Galaxy Quest: “Never give up, never surrender!” It definitely applies to writing and so many other things in life.

What will your next adventure or writing project be?

Tear Down the Throne, Gargoyle Queen #2, will be out on May 3, 2022, and I will be participating in the Dirty Deeds 2 urban fantasy anthology, which will be out June 7, 2022.

Happy reading, everyone! 

Jennifer Estep is the author of the new book A Sense of Danger

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What's the story behind the story? What inspired you to write We Shall Never Speak of This Again?

“The Fields of Athenry” is an Irish song telling the story of a young man who was caught stealing food to avoid starvation during the Famine. It is well known in Ireland and played before many of their professional football (soccer) matches.

“Danny Boy” is an Irish song about a mother lamenting her son's departure for war or emigration.

If you had to write a blurb for the last book you read, what would it say?

This is a tragic story about tyranny and suppression that cost the lives of approximately 4 million Ukrainians. In the early 1930s, Joseph Stalin perpetrated genocide upon the agricultural people of Ukraine. He first stripped the Ukrainians of their land and set up collective farms owned and operated by the state. Former landowners worked the farms. Any kind of dissent led to imprisonment or execution. Stalin wanted the vast amount of grain produced by Ukraine’s fertile “black” soil to feed Russia. Stalin robbed Ukraine of all grain and left the people dying of starvation. In retaliation for dissent, he ordered Communist comrades to enter homes and take all food to include anything on the table already served. In addition, he closed the borders of Ukraine and did not permit any exit from the country. By containing the people, he could keep his crimes secret from the rest of the world. Stalin is high on the list of the greatest tyrants and murderers in the history of the world.    

What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

I enjoy reading historical nonfiction and fiction. I’ve always been a student of history and its impact on the world.

My passion is writing nonfiction from all the way back to a short biography I wrote about John F. Kennedy in middle school. I will continue writing nonfiction. I’m considering writing about other downtrodden peoples including the Cherokee Nation of the 19^th century or my own book about Ukraine’s genocide of the early 1930s.

Do you have any quirky writing habits?

My only quirky habit is my tendency to write late at night, sometimes even all night through to the morning.

What's the best advice you've ever received?

 James Dan Casey is the author of the new book We Shall Never Speak of This Again

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If you were in an elevator with a stranger and had 1 minute or less to describe Murder in Training before the doors opened, what description would you give?

My favorite scene in the book is where Susan and Valerie, thanks to their snooping, find themselves locked in a dark office with rattle snakes and have to find a way out of their predicament!

What's your favorite thing about writing? What's your least favorite thing about it?

My favorite thing about writing is picking out the cover! Seriously though, I like when the first draft is all down and I can go back and fiddle with the words and sentences. My least favorite part of writing is hammering out the first draft and making sure it all makes sense, the clues make it possible for the reader to solve the case, but there are enough red herrings to make it a challenge for the reader.

What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write? 

My favorite genre to read is definitely mystery, but not necessarily cozy mystery. I like having a puzzle to solve with surprises along the way, and a little suspense thrown in. I also like contemporary woman’s fiction that deals with moral issues or family dynamics, ala Jodi Picoult or Lisa Scottoline.

Which books would we be surprised to find on your shelves?

You’d be surprised to find books like Running until You’re 100, The Essential Marathoner, The Scrabble Players’ Dictionary, and The Organized Executive on my shelf. I have run 10 marathons (slowly), am obsessed with Words with Friends, and had a brief stint as a school principal.

If you had to pick one place to vacation for the rest of your life, where would you choose?

If I had to choose one place to vacation for the rest of my life, it would be somewhere on a lake with cool summer weather in an air conditioned cabin with fantastic shopping and theater a short drive away. And I’d own my own rowboat.

What will your next adventure or writing project be? 

My next writing adventure is to make boxed sets out of my Susan Wiles Schoolhouse Mysteries and my Sugarbury Falls Mysteries. Also, to get my remaining books into audio format. I’m currently writing the next Sugarbury Falls book, and I have an idea for a new series that I’m anxious to start.

Diane Weiner is the author of the new book Murder in Training.

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