Marie Lavender tagged me in this blog tour, which is a spin-off of the Writing Process blog tour, a tour I have participated in before.
Marie’s Bio
Marie Lavender lives in the Midwest with her family and three cats. She has been writing for over twenty years. She has more works in progress than she can count on two hands. In college, she published two works in a university publication, and was a copy editor on the staff of an online student journal. Marie has published nineteen books in the genres of historical romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, mystery/thriller, literary fiction and poetry. Feel free to visit her website at http://marielavender.webs.com/ for further information about her work and her life. She is also on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn.
Bestselling author of UPON YOUR RETURN and 18 other books. Finalist and Runner-up in the MARSocial’s Author of the Year Competition. Honorable mention in the January 2014 Reader’s Choice Award. Liebster Blogger Award for 2013 and 2014. Top 50 Authors on AuthorsDB.com. Winner of the Great One Liners Contest on the Directory of Published Authors.
A list of her books and pen names:
Marie Lavender: Upon Your Return; Magick & Moonlight; Upon Your Honor
Erica Sutherhome: Hard to Get; Memories; A Hint of Scandal;Without You; Strange Heat; Terror in the Night; Haunted; Pursuit;Perfect Game; A Touch of Dawn; Ransom; Leather and Lace
Kathryn Layne: A Misplaced Life
Heather Crouse: Express Café and Other Ramblings; Ramblings, Musings and Other Things; Soulful Ramblings and Other Worldly Things
Here are Marie’s blog tour questions for me:
- If you were beginning your writing career today, what would you do differently?
I would have gone indie and Thoreauvian (cabin in the woods) from the get-go.
- What’s the one thing about you that might surprise readers?
I’m lesbian. When I read or write straight romance, I mentally transpose the masculine descriptions into butch book boyfriends, particularly Texan, New Yorker, military or law enforcement heroes.
- Tell us a little about the main character in your latest book.
Middle-aged romantic Camille Sallier is fresh out of a bad breakup with her first woman, Jean. They met while singing in the same blues band and were together about a year. Now she’s falling head over heels for the smoking hot detective investigating her ex’s casino heist and the calamity that seems to surround Camille lately. Even as the detective reacts instinctively to protect Camille, Camille often ends up protecting her. Camille’s closest friend is her head-turning Aunt Audrey.
- What are some of your favorites…
Color?
I’m a Pisces, so I love the watercolors: blue, green and purple. I don’t know if it relates to being perimenopausal, but I’m drawn to purple a lot lately. Maybe it’s just because I love my sister’s taste in the pajamas she gives me every Christmas, which are always purple, gorgeous and comfy.
Food?
Hindu cuisine takes first place, particularly Shah Jahan Biryani, named for the fifth Mughal Emperor of India, who built the Taj Mahal for his beloved wife. Whenever I first walked into a Hindu restaurant at age 19 and inhaled the spices, it felt like I’d come home from an incredibly long journey and I could finally rest and recharge.
Place?
The Queen of Peace aka Hoa Binh (area of peace) shrine on Ninth Avenue in Pt. Arthur, TX. It’s across the street from the Queen of Viet Nam Catholic Church, surrounded by roses and water lilies from the Buddhist temple around the corner, the 12 Apostles and Stations of the Cross and other beautifully wrought statues. Tucked at the foot of the roses is a simple stone monument to the indigent civilian casualties of the Viet Nam War. The centerpiece is a statue of the Blessed Mother, her feet resting on a globe turned to show Viet Nam, sheltered by a cross-topped pagoda. It’s three times life-size, approaching the scale of Southeast Asian Buddhist jungle shrines. I was born in Spring 1967 and was never consciously exposed to this war in school or at home, except to visit the grave of a family friend I never met when we went to Arlington National Cemetery. He grew up with my cousins and was killed in Viet Nam. This is the only Viet Nam civilian memorial I’ve heard of thus far. It’s so quiet, magnificently beautiful and peaceful. One of my besties and I love to just sit and meditate here for hours. It’s well worth the 45 minute drive.
Now, I am tagging the following authors in this post:
Mackenzie’s Bio:
Wife, mother and really young grandmother, Mackenzie lives with her high school sweetheart husband, a neurotic Pomeranian, and a blind cat. She calls Phoenix home because the Southwest feeds her soul. Though her friends claim she’s a princess, she disagrees. After all, one can’t raise two rambunctious boys to wonderful men without getting a little dirt under their nails. A lover of the romance genre, her resolve to share her stories with others was sharpened by a bout with breast cancer. Today she is an award-winning, multi-published author and seven year survivor, living the dream. Her friends call her Mac. She hopes you will too.
Mackenzie’s blog: http://mackenziecrowne.com
Sarah’s Bio:
The youngest of four, Sarah Grimm can’t remember a time when she wasn’t writing. In fact, her siblings believe she began writing in utero to pass the time. As a child, Sarah wrote constantly, littering the house with bulging spiral notebooks and ignoring the ribbing of her mother and sister who routinely said ‘romances?’ in a somewhat scornful tone. Sarah is a Readers Favorite Award winner, a Romance Through the Ages award winner for Best Contemporary Romance, and a Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence finalist.
Sarah’s blog: http://www.SarahGrimm.com
Ella’s Bio:
Ella’s blog: http://ellajadeauthor.blogspot.com/
A heartfelt thank you to all of the participating authors on this blog tour. Let’s keep it going! Feel free to link back to my post and tag other authors! Happy posting! 🙂
Belinda Y. Hughes Books 