Marilyn Holdsworth on Inspiration, Her First Book & More @m_holdsworth #WomensFic #HistFic #TBR

What inspired you to write your first book?
I am very interested in saving the American mustangs and preventing animal abuse especially exploitation of horses. That's why I wrote my first book, Pegasus.

How do you come up with titles for your books?
I choose titles that will interest my readers and are symbolic to the story. Making Wishes has several levels of meaning to the book.

Can you tell us about your main character?
My main character in Making Wishes is Elloree Randall, a young creative woman faced with making some life changing choices. She is torn between her love for her work and her devotion to her sons.

Describe what it’s like to be an author in three words.

Very hard work!

Is there a message in your novel you want readers to grasp?

Yes. I would say that in Making Wishes my message is: A quest for self-discovery to find ones true values often comes at a high price.

How much of the book is realistic?

Although my characters are fictional they are realistic and the story is very believable.

How important do you think villains are?
Very. Conflict created by a clash of good and evil keeps a story moving. Readers engaged in the plot want to see justice done.

Can we expect to see any more books from you?
Yes. I am currently working on my fourth novel.

Have you started another book?
Yes. I am well into writing my fourth novel, The Portrait of Lady J.

What do you do to unwind and relax?
I like to take my dog for walks in the park. I also love to listen to classical music. And for me walking on the beach at sunrise or sunset is the ultimate relaxation.

Elloree Prince is an attractive, creative young woman who marries a wealthy businessman, Tom Randall. After courting his bride with unrelenting determination, Tom moves her into old-moneyed Oak View, where generations of Randalls have lived for years. Outwardly, Elloree appears to settle into raising their two sons within Oak View's stifling social structure, but inwardly, she yearns for her artistic work. 

An unexpected phone call from Mark Williams, her former employer, offers her the career opportunity of a lifetime, and she must make a choice. She is torn between her devotion to her sons and her love for her work. Her decision to return to Wishes, Inc. brings dramatic life changes to her and the people she loves.

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Genre - Women's fiction

Rating – PG-13

"Abby Long is thrilled when she offers the winning bid for an antique desk at an auction. With its intricately inlaid woods and elegant style, the desk is perfect for Abby; it is the gift she promised herself to finally celebrate her thriving antique business. She has no idea that the antique desk holds a secret that will lead her on a fascinating, life-changing journey back in time.

When Abby discovers a hidden diary stuffed inside a secret compartment in the desk, she can hardly wait to read the spidery, faded script. As she carefully turns the tattered pages, she reads the captivating story of two remarkable women from opposite backgrounds who somehow manage to form an unforgettable bond against the backdrop of a fledgling America struggling to find its place in the world. Elizabeth Kortright Monroe, the wife of James Monroe, and Jasmine, a young slave girl, develop an extraordinary relationship as they are united by pivotal historic events, political intrigues, and personal tragedies.

 From a bucolic Virginia plantation to the bloodied, starving streets of post-revolutionary Paris, this powerful tale follows the lives of two courageous women from the past as they quietly influence—and inspire—a woman of today’s world."

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Genre - Historical fiction

Rating – G

Widowed at thirty, Hannah Bradley is a successful journalist focusing on animal abuse issues. An accidental meeting introduces her to lawyer, Winston Caughfield III. Drawn to Hannah’s gentle beauty and fierce commitment to her work, Win joins her in a fight to save wild mustangs from slaughter. Together they rescue a badly injured horse with a mysterious background. Hannah’s search to discover the animal’s true identity leads them into a web of black marketeering and international intrigue. 

Action packed with crisp colorful dialogue the story propels the reader to a race against time conclusion. Marilyn Holdsworth delivers a gripping tale of mystery, adventure and romance guaranteed to hold the interest and capture the heart. She brings true-life characters together with real-life issues to create a fast-paced irresistible story.

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Genre - Contemporary fiction

Rating – PG

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 Connect with Marilyn Holdsworth on Facebook & Twitter

Website  http://marilynholdsworth.com/

Blog http://marilynholdsworth.com/blog/

#Author Chat with Will North @WillNorthAuthor #Contemporary #Women #Fiction

Where do you get support from? Do you have friends in the industry?

I get my support from a group of lunatic friends I see every morning at a coffee stand here on the island. Some of them are, like me, ex-New Yorkers, which means they’re wise-guys. We spend our time (as all New Yorkers do) insulting the heck out of each other and laughing our heads off. It is a wonderful way to start each day.

How much sleep do you need to be your best?

At least nine hours.

Is there anyone you’d like to acknowledge and thank for their support?

Yes, my eighth and twelfth grade English teachers, who believed in me and my writing. I’m still in touch with the twelfth grade teacher and have told him how much he meant to me. He’s a big fan.

Every writer has their own idea of what a successful career in writing is, what does success in writing look like to you?

Being able to pay the mortgage. It’s that simple.

It is vital to get exposure and target the right readers for your writing, tell us about your marketing campaign?

My readers tend to be middle aged women who read voraciously.  However, I have never previously had to concern myself with how to market to them, so this is completely new. My new publisher, Booktrope, is helping with this.

Tell us about your new book? What’s it about and why did you write it?

My latest novel, “Seasons’ End” is about three families who have spent the “summer season” at their beachfront cottage compounds on an island in Washington’s Puget Sound for generations. They are closely connected from childhood, inter-marry, share careers, and have many secrets. On one Labor Day weekend a series of betrayals is revealed which effectively destroys all that history. And yet it is, like my other novels, a love story.

If you could have a dinner party and invite anyone dead or alive, who would you ask?

Lately, because I have started a new mystery series based in England, I would say Dorothy Sayers, from the British Golden Age of mysteries; Martha Grimes, an American who writes mysteries set in the UK but who also is hilariously funny; and perhaps the English author, Peter Lovesey, who creates a splendid sense of place in his mysteries based in Bath.  And, of course, Arthur Conan Doyle.

When you are not writing, how do you like to relax?

I am always writing. I don’t relax. Just ask my wife…

Do you have any tips on how writers can relax?

I would be the last person to offer such advice.

How often do you write? And when do you write?

I used to write eight to ten hours a day, seven days a week (largely because I was on crazy ghostwriting deadlines). Now I write about six to seven hours a day, starting at about 10:00 am and with breaks to walk the dog.

Do you have an organized process or tips for writing well? Do you have a writing schedule?

The first thing I do is read and edit what I wrote the day before. Then I plunge ahead. I don’t outline; that feels like a straightjacket to me. I just press ahead and see what happens next. I am surprised every day.

Every summer for generations, three families intertwined by history, marriage, and career have spent “the season” at their beach cottage compounds on an island in Puget Sound. Today, Martha “Pete” Petersen, married to Tyler Strong, is the lynchpin of the “summer people.” In childhood, she was the tomboy every girl wanted to emulate and is now the mother everyone admires.

Colin Ryan, family friend and the island’s veterinarian, met Pete first in London, years earlier, when she visited his roommate, Tyler. He’s loved her, privately, ever since. Born in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen, son of a bar owner, he’s always been dazzled by what he sees of the sun-kissed lives of the summer people.

But this summer, currents strong as the tides roil: jealousies grow, tempers flare, passions clash. Then, on the last day of the season, a series of betrayals alters the combined histories of these families forever.

As in previous novels, The Long Walk Home and Water, Stone, Heart, with Seasons’ End, Will North weaves vivid settings and memorable characters into a compelling tale of romance and suspense.

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Genre – Women’s Contemporary Fiction

Rating – PG-13

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Connect with Will North on Facebook & Twitter

Website willnorthonline.com

Quick #Author Chat with Diane Mulligan @Mulligan_writes #ChickLit #Women #AmReading

What are some of the best tools available today for writers, especially those just starting out?
I’m a huge fan of Scrivener, which is a word processor just for writers. It has amazing tools for outlining, keeping track of research, keeping track of drafts, note taking. Basically everything a writer could want. I was skeptical when someone recommended it, but I am a complete devotee now. 

What contributes to making a writer successful?
I think that depends on how you define success. A lot of writers define success in terms of sales figures, but for most of us, if that’s the marker, we will be disappointed. I consider myself a successful writer for having completed two novels that readers have reacted to positively, but even that is a limited mark of success because it’s external. Most days, my motivation to write is internal, my motivation to publish is internal, and I don’t think a lot about success. I just think of the work. 

Do you have any advice for writers?
Figure out who your audience is. Good writing is clearly focused, and it’s not plot or character that creates focus, it’s audience. Who is your ideal writer? How will he or she react to your work? 

What dreams have been realized as a result of your writing?
During a free giveaway of my first novel, it appeared next to LITTLE WOMEN on Amazon’s list of top YA novels. That was one of the coolest things ever! Any day I’m on the same shelf as Louisa May Alcott, I’m living the dream. 

When you wish to end your career, stop writing, and look back on your life, what thoughts would you like to have?
I want to look back and say with confidence that I didn’t hold anything back, that I never let fear censor me, that I never let doubt stop me in my tracks. If I can say that, I will have succeeded as a writer. 

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Genre – Women’s Literature

Rating – PG-13

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Since You've Been Gone .... #Excerpt from Olga Soaje's TWELVE HOUSES #Fiction #Women #TBR

Since You’ve Been Gone

Stay with me.

Don’t fall asleep too soon.

The angels can wait for a moment.

—Westlife, “Written in the Stars”

You promised you would never leave me. Thirty-five years ago, I looked you directly in the eye and heard, “I will never leave you,” as we stood next to the ocean. And now, like a thief in the night, you go. No last words, no promises, no tears.

As I look back at that moment, I can still feel your hand intertwined with mine, each finger between mine, like an oyster shut tight against the sea, protecting the treasure it carries inside. But the treasure was in my belly, full of love and expectations.

We walked like tourists along Pier 59, a place we came to think of as home. Wind in our faces and a carefree spirit in our hearts. Gently you stopped and pulled my hand so I would follow suit as you turned; I could see your eyes full of love and complete devotion. I felt I could stay in that moment forever. It was this feeling, this sublime happiness, that I did not want changed or challenged. That’s when I turned to you and looked into those blue eyes as I said aloud, “I don’t want this to change.”

Your face distorted into a concerned expression as you tried to reassure me. “It will be different when the baby arrives; it will be even better.”

“It’s not that. I’m excited about meeting the baby and having it with us.”

So you poked at the subject with concern on your face, as you asked, “Then what is it? What don’t you want to change?”

“Us,” I answered blithely, taking in a large whiff of air through my nose as a source of strength for what I was about to request of you. As I looked out to the sea right in front of us, I said, “I don’t want to forget this feeling. I want to always feel this love and peace between us.”

You gave me that dimply smile. “We will always have it. And when we don’t, we will have the direction in which we want to go.”

As a sea gull passed close to us, landing in the water with a tiny splash, I looked at you and finally said what had been on my mind, the deep seed of this conversation. “I don’t want to lose you.” Once again, your easy laugh, followed by an enveloping hug, while you gave me the grin I’d come to realize meant, You’re hormonal. “I’m serious. Just promise me…”

Can anything good follow the best thing that ever happened to you?

Amelia Weiss loved her husband of thirty-five years very much, but now he’s left her a widow. Without him, she is unable to work in her sculpture studio without crying. She no longer has a bridge to her estranged daughter. And she can’t seem to keep her mind in the present.

But when her daughter reaches out asking for her help and her agent threatens a lawsuit if Amelia doesn’t deliver for an upcoming exhibit, she’s forced to make a choice. Will she reengage with her life and the people in it—allowing room for things to be different than they were before? Or, will she remain stuck in the past, choosing her memories over real-life relationships?

Thrust fully into the present, Amelia stumbles into a surprising journey of self-discovery.

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Genre – Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction

Rating – PG-13

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