When did you realize you wanted to write novels?
When I was in fourth grade, I began writing episodes of Lassie.
How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?
I wrote the first Hightower Book, Secrets of the Heart, thirty years ago. We lived in New Hampshire for seven years, and my critique partners agreed to read this old manuscript. With their encouragement and help, I published it last year. Return to Hightower is the second book in the series.
Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?
I am indie published on Amazon.
Where do you write?
I write in my office. Ideas pop up at any time, so I am often scribbling notes on scraps of paper or receipts.
Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?
I like it quiet, but if a scene or additions blast through my mind, I can write anywhere.
How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?
My first book, Murder on the 4th Tee, came from a golf course where my husband and I played. Some readers recognize the town I used in the story.
The Hightower novels come from experience. I lived in Colorado for decades. I raised and showed paint horses for over twenty years. And we spent a great deal of time in Wyoming at a relative’s cabin outside of Laramie. So, I have lots of memories and knowledge to create these stories.
Describe your process for naming your character?
I research names. In Return to Hightower there is a character named Phillipe Marshall. I needed a name that represented his job, a steward and protector of actress Desiree Diamond. Marshall in French means steward. And Phillipe means lover of horses.
Real settings or fictional towns?
My towns are fictional but may be outside of a major city.
What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?
Phillipe Marshal is Desiree’s protector from the time she moved to New York. He’s older, good looking, can be stuffy and formal like a stern butler, always well dressed, a professional cook, but at the same time he is caring and giving.
What’s your quirkiest quirk?
I tend to be ADHD and I tend to change discussion topics without warning. My husband is used to it, so he reminds me when I do. A busy mind is like that.
If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why?
I love Tami Hoag’s Lucky Lady. It’s fun, dangerous, has mystery, and romance.
Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?
I wish I had investigated self-publishing earlier. Thanks to my critique partners, I took their advice and self-published. Readers like the books, and that is a good thing. I guess that’s the fear of any artist—exposure to the world.
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
Cliques. I try to stay away from people like that because they often as not turn on each other.
You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
A flare gun, a machete, my husband.
What was the worst job you’ve ever held?
I worked at an employment agency. I got paid to do what the client could do on their own. It was so boring.
Who’s your all-time favorite literary character (any genre)? Why?
Jane Eyre. I have read the book numerous times throughout my life, starting in high school. I’ve seen all the movies. I guess the story about someone who has nothing, who can find hope in everyday life and eventually find happiness, inspires me. Two of my characters have that character arc.
Ocean or mountains?
I do like living near the Florida coast and sitting on the beach or walking in the waves. But, having lived in Colorado for most of my adult life, I do like the seclusion of the Rocky Mountains and nature.
City girl/guy or country girl/guy?
Country girl. I love all animals, horses and dogs especially.
What’s on the horizon for you?
I have another book in the Hightower Series in the works. I also have two romantic suspense books that take place in Seattle waiting for me to edit.
Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?
I like to write books that I would like to read. I like to write the “what’s the worst thing that could happen now” in my books. And of course, a happy ending.
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A Hightower Mountain Novel, Book 2
Steve Tower's curiosity grows when he learns a beautiful woman is the owner of Diamond Ranch. But his interest intensifies when he discovers that some of the employees are former ranch hands of his family's Hightower Ranch, the relatives of Desiree Lorde--the woman who shattered his heart and dreams, a woman he never forgot.
When soap opera star, Desiree Diamond acquires the ranch of a distant relative, she has one goal--revenge on family and ex-friends who abandoned her when she needed them most. First she sets her sights on Hightower Ranch and Steve Tower who jilted her when she was pregnant and destitute. But, she's not destitute any longer. She is building a premier horse ranch to challenge their prominence in the horse industry and will soon move there.
But before she can make the move, Desiree is pressured by her producer to bring attention to the lagging soap-opera by doing a cross-country tour and attending her high school reunion. And there he is, handsome as ever. Even after fifteen years, Desiree and Steve cannot deny the smoldering flames of the past, and the heart-breaking events of their youth arouse old fears and uncertainties.
Steve realizes that he cannot lose her again. As lies of the past peel away, they delve into what happened so many years ago and uncover a conspiracy to keep them apart. After a suspicious accident threatens Desiree's life, Steve knows someone will do anything to keep those dark, evil secrets hidden and separate them this time forever.
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2 comments:
Love the series!! Looking forward to the next episode!
Loved the book. Can't wait for more.
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