New release and giveaway by Paty Jager!

Paty Jager

Multi-Genre Author

Riffraff Follows Fools

        Avid Readers, thank you for having me on your blog during my blog tour.
     When I do research for a book, it’s the interesting or unique things I discover that cause my interest antennae to start quivering. One of the things I discovered while researching for my new release, Laying Claim, was the abundance of conniving people who followed the gold seekers.

Meet Award Winning Romance Author, Meg Mims! Contest Alert!

Meg Mims

Romance Author

       This week's author is going to take us back in time to attend a banquet at the Ebner Hotel in Sacramento, California 1869 to get us ready for her books, so we hope all of you have dressed for the occasion. If not, step over to our dressing room and find a gown that fits. I know we'll all look fabulous.

      At the bottom is Meg's Contest so do leave a comment with your email addy and e-book format to be in. Here's a sample of the gowns and the menu for the ball!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Reader’s Haven: Meg, what a wonderful party! We know everyone will have a great time. *spreading our fans for the gentlemen) Tell us a bit about yourself...Your gown is beautiful, by the way.

Meg: Thank you! I thought a ball would be fun. I’m an artist in watercolor, acrylic and pen/ink media. I find it very relaxing! 

Reader’s Haven: What made you want to become a writer?

Meg: When I first started reading the Boxcar Children mysteries, I knew I wanted to write my own stories. I did a lot of reading first - and waited till I was married with a baby to start.

Reader’s Haven: Please share a bit about your new release, Double or Nothing, without giving away any spoilers.



Meg: The book is the sequel to my Spur Award-winning novel, Double Crossing. Lily Granville finds herself in more trouble when her guardian announces her engagement to a hand-picked suitor. But she is in love with Ace Diamond, the Texan renegade who saved her life on the journey to California — a man her uncle is determined to keep away at all cost. Ace is just as determined to prove himself worthy of Lily’s hand, but is framed for murder after a dynamite explosion. Will Lily be able to save him from the hangman’s noose?

Reader’s Haven: Do you write under a pen name?

Meg:  Meg Mims is my pen name. I use “Meg” in memory of my niece who was killed in an automobile accident.

Reader’s Haven: That's a warm gesture and a way to honor her memory. What types of hero or heroine do you like best?


Meg:  I love a heroine who is independent and intuitive with plenty of courage.  I prefer a hero who isn’t totally alpha nor totally beta -- a mix of both is best! Ace is pretty gruff, and comes across as a real mercenary when Lily first meets him, but he has a heart of gold.

Reader’s Haven: Tell us about a typical day in your life as a writer.


Meg:  I’m ruled by my dogs! They get me up at 7 a.m., I let them out, feed/water them, then the cat, before my own breakfast and coffee. Then I get busy writing and catching up on mail and social media -- in between all the trips outside/back inside, barking at squirrels or the mailman, trucks, etc. It’s not quiet, that’s for sure. They let me know what they want! Even my poor husband comes second.

Reader’s Haven: Do your books have a common theme or are they all different?


Meg:  Pretty much solid mysteries. Even the short novellas I’ve written have a touch of intrigue going on, so I guess that’s what I love best. Justice must be served in the end.


Reader’s Haven: How long does it take you to write and then edit a story?


Meg:  I used to write a first draft in six months, then edit for a few more. Now I’m trying to get a first draft down in half that time, as long as it’s quality work, and edit for another month. Whew.



Reader’s Haven: Do you have to be alone to write?



Meg:  I prefer it, but it doesn’t usually happen! There’s either a cat, a dog or two, or my husband, the TV blaring, the phone ringing... I often put my headphones on and listen to music while I write.


Reader’s Haven: How do you go about naming characters?

Meg:  The characters usually introduce themselves, LOL. Either in my head, or I get a sense if a certain name is right or not. Lily in the Double series was first Julia, but she really didn’t like that name. Then she became Caroline - nope. Finally Lily seemed to fit. Ace was always Ace due to his poker-playing, and he wouldn’t tell ME his Christian name until Lily asked him.

Reader’s Haven: Is it easier to write about the characters if you find pictures of them before you write or do you write then find character pictures?


Meg: Usually I have the character in mind with their traits, and then photos “cement” them into place for deepening their characters. I used the silent screen actress Mary Miles Mintner for Lily, and the 1970s actor Pete Duel for Ace - both had tragic lives, so I felt I was giving them a “fresh” chance to find a happier ending. Here's a blurb for each book:

DOUBLE CROSSING ... August, 1869: Lily Granville is stunned by her father’s murder. Only one other person knows about a valuable California gold mine deed — both are now missing. Lily heads west on the newly opened transcontinental railroad, determined to track the killer. She soon realizes she is no longer the hunter but the prey. As things progress from bad to worse, Lily is uncertain who to trust—the China-bound missionary who wants to marry her, or the wandering Texan who offers to protect her … for a price. Will Lily survive the journey and unexpected betrayal? 

DOUBLE OR NOTHING ... October, 1869: Lily Granville finds herself in more trouble when her guardian announces her engagement to a hand-picked suitor. But she is in love with Ace Diamond, the Texan renegade who saved her life on the journey to California — a man her uncle is determined to keep away at all cost. Ace is just as determined to prove himself worthy of Lily’s hand, but is framed for murder after a dynamite explosion. Will Lily be able to save him from the hangman’s noose?

Reader’s Haven: How do you pick locations for your stories?

Meg: That always comes first when I have an idea, before the characters. With the Double series, I was inspired by Charles Portis’ True Grit, plus the movies, and the premise of “girl’s father is killed, she decides to track down murderer.” But I twisted it to make Lily a sheltered, wealthy 19-year-old, fairly naive, who travels on the newly opened transcontinental railroad instead of a horse. Ace is Rooster Cogburn and LaBoeuf rolled into one, with his own quirks. In Double or Nothing, California plays a big role, so I researched the setting before deciding on the story’s premise.     I'd like to share an excerpt if I may:

1869, California

I jumped at a screeching whistle. Men swarmed over the distant slope like bees over a wax honeycomb in a mad scramble. “Good heavens. What is that about?”

Uncle Harrison pulled me out of harm’s way. “They’re almost ready to begin the process of hydraulic mining,” he said and pulled his hat down to avoid the hot sun. “You’ll see. This is far better than panning for gold in a creek bed.”

“I can already see how destructive it is, given the run-off,” I said, eying the rivulets of dried mud that marked each treeless incline. “I’ve read about how the farmers can’t irrigate their fields and orchards due to the gravel and silt filling the rivers—”

Water suddenly gushed from two hydraulic nozzles in a wide, powerful stream. The men’s bulging arm muscles strained their shirts, their faces purple with the effort to control the water. I turned my gaze to the ravaged earth. Mud washed down into the wooden sluices, where other men worked at various points to spray quicksilver along the wide stretch. Others worked at a frantic pace to keep the earthy silt moving.

An older man with a grizzled goatee and worn overalls held out a canteen. “Have a sip while you’re waiting, miss,” he said. “A body gets mighty thirsty out here.”

“Thank you.”

I sipped the cold, refreshing ginger-flavored liquid that eased my parched throat. Dirt from the canteen streaked my gloves. Not that it mattered. At least the spatters of fresh mud wouldn’t show on my black mourning costume and riding boots. Two days of rain earlier in the week had not helped.

The kind man offered the canteen to Uncle Harrison, who brushed it aside with a curt shake of his head. Steaming, I bit back an apology. The man had already headed back to his position near the sluices.

Bored of watching the ongoing work, I wandered over to several horses that stood patient in the sun and patted their noses. A tooled leather saddle sat atop one gelding’s glossy brown hide, and the silver-studded bridle looked as rich. The horse gave a low whicker in greeting. If only I’d pocketed a few carrots or sugar lumps from breakfast.

“You’re a beauty. I wish I could ride you for a bit.”

The gelding’s ears dipped forward. One of the men left the knot of others in a huff. His dusty open coat swung around him as he stalked, spurs jingling, and closed the distance. He passed by me with a mere tip of his wide-brimmed hat and untied the reins. The horse pawed the ground, jittery, as if sensing the man’s foul mood while he mounted. I noted his scowl. Was he upset that I’d dared touch his property? A scruffy beard and thick black mustache hid his mouth. He rode off, keeping the gelding’s gait easy, down the gully toward the Early Bird’s entrance.

“Who was that?” I asked a miner.

The worker wiped sweat from his forehead with a sleeve. “Señor Alvarez? He’s got a burr under his blanket as usual. Pay him no mind, miss.”

I rubbed the remaining horse’s flank and glanced around the mining site. My uncle continued to chat with the foreman close to the shack near the head of the sluices. Another section of the wooden troughs was raised from the ground further north at a different bank of earth. My curiosity increased. I walked to the sluice and stared down at the filth in the bottom. No glints of gold flecked the bits of rock and slag. I had no idea what quicksilver looked like either. This whole business seemed crazy, although Uncle Harrison disagreed.

In the distance, pines smudged the lower half of the Sierra’s tiny white-capped peaks. To the west, gray clouds threatened the pale blue sky. No doubt rain would soak everything again by morning. My uncle had mentioned how winter was wetter here than back home in Chicago, or even St. Louis. I hadn’t known what to expect for autumn in California. Now that it was close to October, the stands of golden aspen on a ridge high above sported various shades of green, gold and hues of orange.

Homesickness overwhelmed me. I longed to see the brilliant shades of orange, red and yellow oaks, the thick forest of elms and birches behind my father’s house in Evanston. To ride along the shoreline of Lake Michigan’s navy waters, and watch the snow falling fast on a chilly winter’s day. I wouldn’t even mind listening to Adele Mason’s endless chatter about the latest dinner parties she attended with her many beaus.

It seemed like an eternity since I’d crossed two thousand miles of prairie and mountains on the Union and Central Pacific railroad. Donner Lake had resembled a sapphire jewel nestled among pristine snow fields. Perhaps it was frozen already.

I shivered, remembering the darkness of Summit Tunnel. It also brought back the delicious memory of feeling safe, nestled in Ace’s strong arms. Feeling the sudden shock when his tongue sought my own…

“Miss? It’s dangerous standin’ that close to the sluice. Over yonder is best.”

Guilt flooded my heart. Nodding to the man, I twisted around and glanced in the direction he indicated. My uncle remained at the shack. “Will they ever stop talking business?”

“Doubt it.” The miner was the same one who’d offered me water earlier. He carried a roll of canvas slung over a shoulder. Shrugging, he swiped his muddy goatee and cheek against his burden’s nubby surface. “Reckon they’ll yammer on for a while more.”

“Thank you. I’ll be careful.”

“Sure thing, miss.”

He passed by and handed the canvas to a pair of men. They unrolled it and laid the fabric inside the wooden sluice. I walked across the shifting ground, trying to avoid the worst of the mud’s damp patches. One claimed my uncle’s shoe when we arrived that morning. I fought hard not to laugh aloud, watching Uncle Harrison hop about on one foot, so comical with his blustery red face. At last a worker retrieved his shoe, mud up to his elbow, half his face coated as well. My uncle had not thanked the man for the rescue, either.

On higher ground, two workers held long snaking hoses that spurted water at the high bank. Two others sprayed quicksilver over the sluice. It didn’t look like anything but dirty water. I sighed. This entire trip had been a waste of time. Uncle Harrison resented the questions I’d peppered the foreman with and ignored my opinions on how the operation damaged the countryside. Why had he suggested I tag along in the first place?

I should have stayed back in Sacramento. My sketchbook drawings needed work. I had yet to finish anything I’d glimpsed during the journey on the train. Etta had brought all my watercolor supplies from Evanston, and most of my books too.

But I didn’t want to read or paint. A deep melancholy robbed me of energy. Nightmares haunted my sleep, of the deep ravine and the lizard I’d caught, of the sandy slope I climbed on Mt. Diablo, desperate to escape my father’s killer. Of being trapped, with no way out, and facing death, and of seeing that shocked surprise… and hearing the gunshot.

Self-defense, as Ace claimed. My uncle and the sheriff agreed.

Poor Ace. He’d felt bad afterward, forced into a cowardly deed. I had never shot anything except a badger with Father’s Navy revolver. Missed, too. But I’d tried to protect my darling pet lizard’s clutch of eggs in the garden back home. The thought of shooting a human being turned my stomach. I suppose stabbing someone wasn’t any less of a sin. Heavy guilt weighed on me. Had it been self-defense? I shuddered at the memory.

As Mother used to say, it was water under the bridge. Nothing I might say or do now would change the past. But I’d rather avoid making such a horrible choice again.

Instead I trudged toward the shack. The foreman held a large piece of blueprint paper between his hands while my uncle pointed at various sections. Two other men argued with them, their heated words carrying over the whooshing of hoses and creaks and jolts of skeleton wagons over the rutted ground. Most of their argument was peppered with technical jargon that didn’t make any sense. Even Chinese sounded more familiar.

“We haven’t made enough headway,” said a man in a tailored suit, whose gold watch chain glinted in the sun. “I say we dig out the ridge all the way.”

“You take that ridge down any more than we have and we’ll never get equipment to the furthest point of the claim, over here,” my uncle said and prodded the map. “That was Alvarez’s advice. He knows this land better than you, Williamson.”

“I agree, it’s too dangerous,” the foreman said.

 “I’m the engineer! Are you implying I don’t know my business?”

“I’m saying it’s stupid to undermine that ridge. You’re being a stubborn coot.”

“You’re a fine one to call me stubborn—”

Good heavens. I reversed direction and headed back toward the sluice. They were sure to argue for another few hours. I wanted to ride that horse, even if it meant hiking my skirts to my knees and baring my ankles. The poor animal looked like it a good run, or at least a trot over the rough ground. I had to do something productive or I’d go mad.

Steering around the same boggy patch of mud, I cut close to the sluice. A blood-curdling yell halted everyone. I whirled to see the entire bank of earth, a huge avalanche of mud, rocks and two large trees root-first, rushing straight for me.

          Website       Blog    FaceBook     Double-Series FB Page   Pinterest  

Twitter:  @MegMims

CONTEST:  On Saturday, May 18th, Meg will pick one commenter to win the e-book, Double or Nothing! Leave a comment with your email and e-format you need. Thank you all for stopping in!

Interview with the lovely romance author, Charmaine Gordon!

Charmaine Gordon

Romance Author

     Welcome to our Haven! This week we have an author who has become a great friend and that is so precious. Charmaine, welcome! It's a pleasure to have you with us. Our readers are thrilled to meet new authors. Tell us a bit about your amazing background!

 

Charmaine: Thank you so much for having me as your guest. Your site is very nice here! A bit about me...I have years of experience as an actor on daytime drama. Stage, spokesperson and commercials plus writing sketches for Air Force shows helped prepare me for the wonders of a writing career. Of course, I didn't realize it at the time when immersed in the written words of others, that I was like a sponge, soaking up how to construct a scene, write dialogue, and paint the setting.
      My writing effort came later when I wrote a two page story, sent it to son, Paul who commented, "Cool. Can you write ten pages?" Seemed impossible but the story poured from my fingers and seventy thousand words later, I typed The End.
      I kissed my acting career goodbye, leaving on a high note with the lead in an Off Broadway play, "The Fourth Commandment" author Rich Knipe. It was great fun and time to move on. Movies like "Working Girl", "Road to Wellsville" and having the pleasure of Anthony Hopkins company at lunch, working with Mike Nichols in "Regarding Henry" and singing outside with Harrison Ford, crying with Gene Wilder over loss on another set, When "Harry Met Sally" with the whole gang singing It Had to Be You. Lots of fond memories. My first job as stand-in leg model for Geraldine Ferraro in a Diet Pepsi commercial with Secret Service men guarding her and her daughters. A sweet time.

 

RH: Wow! That is a wonderful background. Your stories reflect your talent! Readers, here's an excerpt from one of her books and be sure to check out her newest release, The Catch!

 

Here’s a blurb from one of my faves, Reconstructing Charlie.

     Charlie Costigan has a secret. Home life gone from bad to the worse when she protects her mother from another vicious attack by her drunken father. Midnight. Clothes thrown into an old suitcase, she races for the bus with a letter to an unknown aunt and uncle. 'This is my daughter. Embrace her as if she were your own.'
     Determined, Charlie begins again. Alone with her secret. 

     After I wrote The End, two secondary characters came to perch on my shoulders and complain. “How about us? Tell our story. “ I caved and began the process all over again with Sin of Omission. “A lie by any other name is still a lie” to paraphrase Shakespeare.

     My favorite scene from this book is where Shelley Jackson finally tells the truth in the presence of her lover, Jimmy Costigan and her best friend, Charlie, Jimmy’s sister.

     “Charlie, you accepted me as a friend and roommate but how would you feel if I were to marry your brother and bring color into the lily white home of your Aunt and Uncle. I’ve been there. So pristine and perfect. I envied your life and all the love they have for you.” She took another deep breath and reached for the twins in Jimmy’s arms. He relinquished them so readily it made her pause and when he again refused to meet her eyes, her mind moved on. Maybe their father didn’t want them after all. “That’s about all except to say I’m sorry. I’ve committed a sin of omission by not coming clean. If you can find it in your hearts to forgive me, we can work it out. Ball’s in your court.”

 

Barnes & Noble

Paperback $14.95

NOOK Book $4.99

Amazon

 

Amazon

 Barnes & Noble

 

 

 

Vanilla Heart Publishing

 

Charmaine Gordon

 

 

Join us in the jungle with author Paty Jager!

Paty Jager

Romance Author

This is a special treat this week as we visit with Paty on location in the gorgeous, yet danergous, Guatemalan Jungle - the setting of her new series. To us, it looks like it could  be filled with alligators, spiders and snakes so let's stay close. Paty's doing a giveaway at the end!

RH:  Paty, I have to admit, this jungle setting is definitely different. Too bad we hate spiders and snakes because we do love the jungles. Let's get comfy  beneath the canopy of trees here. Deanna brought bug spray if anyone needs it. Okay Paty, thank you for taking the time to chat with us in the midst of writing more books! What else do you do along with your writing?

Paty:  Deanna and Louise, thank you for having me this week. My husband and I own 350 acres in two different areas. On 70 acres where we live, we raise beef cattle and on the other 280 in another area (where I spend a good part of my summer) we raise alfalfa for hay.  Our goal is to sell the 70 acres and be set up to raise alfalfa and have more months out of the year where we can travel. But I enjoy the summer at the “cabin” when I irrigate and help with the haying. There are less domestic chores to do and more time to write.

RH:  That sounds like a lot of work! What do you do to relax?

Paty: It depends on the relaxation. I like to ride my horse, go for walks, and visit with family and friends. I also like to sew.

RH:  As authors, we’ve sometimes been accused of being several people. How many personalities live in your mind?

Paty: Oh my! Now there’s a loaded question! ;0) I’m sure my husband would say I have four: The vixen, the loyal wife, the mother bear, and the b*#@*. LOL I am a hormone driven personality so he gets hit with all of these every month. Now if you ask me… diva, hermit/recluse, best friend, vixen, adventure seeker, and on my bad days, old lady!

RH:  We all have bad days but here's hoping the vixen wins out more often! What is your strongest area in writing: plotting, character personality, dialogue, etc?

Paty: I believe my strongest area is character personality. I finaled in a contest years ago with my second historical romance because the editor loved my character, but I still hadn’t grasped GMC(Goals, motivation, and conflict). And usually in reviews it is my characters that get the accolades.

RH:  Can you work on more than one book at a time?

Paty: I kind of do. I don’t actually write on two books but while I’m writing one, I’m always working up the idea and characters for the next one I’m going to write. It’s like an assembly line in my head. One I’m working on, one I’m discovering the characters, another I’m conjuring up the idea.  And there is always one book in edits, while another is being written.

RH:  That's a great way to describe the process! How long does it take you to write a book?

Paty: Without family and life interruptions I can write a book in three months. That’s having it already figured out in my head and doing a good part of the research.

RH:  What is your editing process?

Paty: When I started I had a strenuous editing process, but now, after having written over twenty books (13 published),  I begin writing, write a chapter, review it the next day and write the next chapter, review it the next day and write a new chapter. Start at the beginning a couple times before I get to about chapter five, then I start sending chapters to two critique partners and by the time I finish writing the book and they read the last chapters, I only have one more run through before I send it to a critique partner/editor who goes through it and I’m done.  For self publishing then it goes through a beta/ proof reader before I publish the book.

RH: Many readers like these interviews that show them more of the authors they're interested in. What is your favorite way to connect with readers?
 

Paty: I enjoy connecting with readers anywhere. Either in person at events or online via email and chats.

RH:  Tell us about a typical day in your life as a writer.

Paty: A typical day would be getting up at 6am, feed my husband and send him off to work by 6:30. I get on the computer and answer e-mails, do promotion, hit some blogs to comment until 8am. Then I dress, have breakfast and do chores. This time of year it’s break the ice on the water tanks and feed the animals hay and grain. I come back in and write or do promotion until noon. I take an hour lunch break. In warm weather I go for a walk. I sit back down and write until 4pm then I go out and feed again and when my husband gets home we feed hay off a trailer to the cows. We have dinner and I may get back on the compute for another hour or two of promotion related things.

RH:  Hardly the life of a glamorous Hollywood author is it? You put in more than a full day's work, woman! Do your books have a common theme or are they all different?

Paty: The common theme in my books is justice prevailing or showing an injustice.

RH: We love your books but we're curious - what prompted you to sway from western romance to the action adventure?

Paty: I’d read a book dubbed “a female Indiana Jones” and was disappointed in the fact the first and last chapters were the only chapters set outside the U.S. So, after complaining to several people and having them tell me to write what I think one should be, I took them up on it after brainstorming with another writer. Through that brainstorming Doctor Isabella Mumphrey and DEA agent Augustino Constantine a.k.a. Tino Kostas emerged to be partnered in Secrets of a Mayan Moon.

RH: oooooo - I like the way you think! Take on a challenge and know you can accomplish what you set out to do! What setting outside the U.S. did you pick and why?

Paty: Having a DEA agent as the hero, I needed a country rife with drug trafficking and one that would have an ancient civilization for my anthropologist heroine to specialize in.  With this knowledge and research, I came up with Guatemala. It has rain forests, drug trafficking, and the Maya.

RH: Is this the only action adventure you’ll write?

Paty: No, it’s actually the first of a trilogy with Isabella Mumphrey and Tino Constantine. The second book, Secrets of an Aztec Temple, will be available later this month. If the three books go over well and readers want more of Isabella and Tino, I could write more books.

Blurb:

      What happens when a brilliant anthropologist is lured to the jungle to be used as a human sacrifice? 

      Child prodigy and now Doctor of Anthropology, Isabella Mumphrey, is about to lose her job at the university. In the world of publish or perish, her mentor’s request for her assistance on a dig is just the opportunity she’s been seeking. If she can decipher an ancient stone table—and she can—she’ll keep her department. She heads to Guatemala, but drug trafficking bad guys, artifact thieves, and her infatuation for her handsome guide wreak havoc on her scholarly intentions.

       DEA agent Tino Kosta, is out to avenge the deaths of his family. He’s deep undercover as a jaguar tracker and sometimes jungle guide, but the appearance of a beautiful, brainy anthropologist heats his Latin blood taking him on a dangerous detour that could leave them both casualties of the jungle.
      Secrets of a Mayan Moon is available at Kindle, Nook, and Smashwords

Read a short excerpt HERE!

 Bio:  Wife, mother, grandmother, and the one who cleans pens and delivers the hay; award winning author Paty Jager and her husband currently ranch 350 acres when not dashing around visiting their children & grandchildren. She not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it. You can learn more about Paty at her blog;   her website;  or on Facebook;  and Twitter - @patyjag. 

CONTEST:  One lucky commenter will win an e-copy of Secrets of a Mayan Moon! You can earn more than one entry!

a Rafflecopter giveaway