Why that genre?

Posted on July 1, 2019 Written by
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Monday musings by your favorite bestselling authors

Readers often associate their favorite writers with a genre: romance, mystery, thriller, science-fiction or fantasy, to name just a few.

Why did the author choose that genre? Your favorite bestsellers answer that question this week.

Alan McDermott

Action thrillers

When I pick up a book I want it to keep me gripped from start to finish and be something I can relate to. I couldn’t see myself delivering that with a science-fiction or romance novel. I could try, but I know I would soon get bored with it. If the subject matter doesn’t interest me, I can hardly expect my readers to become engrossed. I think it is important that you write about what you love.

D.G. Torrens

Romance, memoir and poetry

I write about what interests me personally. If I won’t read it then I certainly will not write about it. It is important for me to love what I do. Therefore, I apply it to what genre I write in.

Samreen Ahsan

Historical fantasy and paranormal romance

I write what I enjoy writing most, keep the readers busy. Someday, when I itch to write science fiction, I’d love to write that. Regardless of what genre it is, I want my readers to keep guessing.

Mary Doyle

Mystery, fantasy and erotica

If I were traditionally published, my biggest fear would be a publisher that insisted that I write in only one genre. That would be the end of my writing career. I’ve written mystery, urban fantasy, erotica and memoir and someday soon I’m going to write some dystopian fiction … maybe zombie stuff, maybe some other end of the world thing. I won’t write in one genre and you can’t make me!

Raine Thomas

Young adult and new adult fiction

I write romance across multiple sub-genres (YA, contemporary, sports, Sci-Fi, fantasy). I’ve always been a romantic, so my writing will always reflect that part of me. I also love diversity and exploring new things, so branching into the sub-genres allows me to explore that too. Who knows where the Muse will lead me next?

Toby Neal

Mystery, thriller and romance

I think characters are most important in writing, because no matter what genre you are in, people want to follow a heroine’s journey as they develop. So while I mostly write mystery/thriller because I love puzzles and surprises and a lot of tension, I am always writing that character arc of development. Over and over, whether it’s a thriller, a romance, or my own memoir. Riveting characters in a process of growth is what keeps readers coming back.

Gae-Lynn Woods

Mystery

I’ve always been drawn to stories with multiple layers and characters who grow and change. I love the challenge of figuring out “who done it” in another writer’s work, and seeing if I can keep the reader guessing in my own. I end up creating the characters I want to know more about and writing the stories I’d want to read.

DelSheree Gladden

Young adult, new adult, romance, fantasy and more

I write in multiple genres because I read just about every genre and like to try new things in my writing. When an idea comes to me, I go with whatever genre seems to fit that story and let it develop organically. The character’s journey is more important to me than following genre conventions.

Caleb Pirtle III

Thriller, literary fiction and memoir

I generally write historical thrillers or historical mysteries because I prefer living in the past. There is a certain feeling of the unknown and unexplained in an earlier time, especially when my stories have a World War II backdrop. Evil has a face. And the night holds suspense with every tick of the clock. It’s difficult for me to write suspense when all my hero has to do is pull out a cell phone can dial 9-11 if he’s in trouble. I can research the 1930s and 1940s, and every incident I find hides a mystery just waiting to be found and told.

Next week: more authors on why they chose their genre, including David C. Cassidy, Scott Bury, Seb Kirby and more!

And happy Canada Day to all our Canadian readers!

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Win-A-Book Wednesday: Return of the Ascendant, by Raine Thomas

Posted on May 7, 2014 Written by
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Return of the Ascendant_ebooksm

Win an e-copy of bestseller Raine Thomas’ latest novel, Return of the Ascendant. Just leave an answer in the Comments to:

Who (or what) is your favorite Sci-Fi villain and why?” 

The author will choose the most interesting answer.

Return of the Ascendant

This is a New Adult novel recommended for ages 17+.

Expecting to enjoy another typical college night at a frat party with friends, Kyra Vaughn’s plans derail when she’s almost killed…twice. Her savior, a tall, sexy stranger who calls himself TaeDane, claims that he’s the personal bodyguard for the Ascendant of Alametria. She’s convinced he’s crazy.

Especially when he insists that she’s the Ascendant.

With dark enemies hunting her down, Kyra has no choice but to trust her supposed bodyguard. Ty vows to help her remember her past and return her safely to Alametria, but someone seems intent on interfering, challenging his abilities at every turn.

As Kyra’s memories emerge, she remembers that Ty is more to her than he’s let on…much more than he’s allowed to be. She’ll also discover that there are many things about her planet and herself that she’d rather forget. In the end, she’ll have to make a choice: cling to the life she knows, or risk it all to become the person she’s destined to be.

Find Return of the Ascendant on:

Visit Raine Thomas’

And follow Raine on Twitter @Raine_Thomas  

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Focus Friday: For Everly, by Raine Thomas

Posted on March 21, 2014 Written by
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EverlyecoversmallThis week’s Friday Focus comes from Raine Thomas’s For Everly, a New Adult romance.

Thirty minutes later, she finally arrived at the restaurant. Between traffic and the unfamiliar area of town, it took her longer than she expected to get there. She thought she had given herself extra time, but she was still five minutes late. When she pulled up, she found herself at a valet stand. Rolling down her window, she flagged the valet who eyed her car as though it had just broken down at his feet. He approached with notable reluctance.

Waving at the twenty-dollar valet fee posted on a nearby folding sign, she asked, “Is there self-parking?”

“No, ma’am,” he replied stiffly.

She swallowed and nodded, getting out of her car so he could park it. She only had twenty dollars in cash, and she had intended to pay for her lunch with it. She knew the bank account was low until she got paid again on Friday, but she’d have to risk debiting her meal. Why hadn’t she thought to set some parameters when Cole suggested the restaurant?

Her headache ballooned as she hurried through the front door of the restaurant and looked around without spotting Cole. Frowning, she approached the maître d.

“Miss Wallace?” he greeted her.

Surprised, she nodded.

“Welcome. Mr. Parker is waiting at your table. It would be my pleasure to escort you there. May I take your coat?”

Damn. She probably couldn’t even afford the free bread at this place.

Giving the maître d a wan smile, she shrugged out of her coat, putting her gloves in the pockets and wrapping her scarf around one of her purse straps. She was sure she was imagining it, but she swore the maître d held her Target-brand garment a few inches away from his body as he turned to hand it off to whoever guarded the coat room.

Shifting uncomfortably when he gave her a quick once-over and lingered disapprovingly on her jeans, she took a deep breath and followed him into the dining room. There wasn’t anything she could do about how she was dressed, was there?

Lord, what a hot mess this was.

As she spotted Cole across the dining room at a table with a beautiful view of the outside terrace, another thought occurred to her. How should she greet him? Should she shake his hand since this was a business meeting? Go in for the awkward hug since she was good friends with his brother?

Bow because he looked like a god in his simple black V-neck sweater and gray pants?

She caught his gaze when she was still about ten feet from the table. A variety of expressions crossed his features, so many that she couldn’t read them all. She definitely caught irritation, though, and was puzzled when he ended up smiling.

OhGodOhGodOhGod…

He stood up. The maître d deposited her with a slight bow, so she ruled out that form of greeting. Then it was just her and Cole.

“Hello, Everly,” he said, his voice as smooth as a buttered biscuit.

“Hi.”

Had that been her voice that came out all breathy? She prayed it hadn’t sounded as ridiculous as she thought.

She started to lift her right hand for a shake, then realized he was tilting in for the awkward hug. To avoid hitting him in the crotch, she adjusted her trajectory. He smoothly used his left hand to continue her forward motion so that her hand ended up encircling his neck.

Then before she knew what was happening, her lips were pressed against his.

About the book

This is a New Adult novel recommended for ages 17+ due to mature subject matter.

Determined to overcome a dark and tragic past, college student Everly Wallace is only months away from earning her degree in physical therapy. She’s consumed with school, caring for her ailing grandfather, and figuring out how to pay the next bill. The last thing she wants is a relationship, but it just might be the one thing she needs.

Major league pitcher Cole Parker hasn’t fought for anything in his life. He went from a privileged upbringing to a multimillion dollar All-Star career. But when his pitching shoulder starts to give him trouble at only twenty-four years old, he faces the possibility of his injury becoming public knowledge and costing him everything.

In a desperate bid to save his career, Cole decides to hire someone to treat his injury, someone who will keep things off the record and out of the media. He finds the perfect solution in Everly. As mysterious as she is beautiful, she provides an enticing distraction from his pain.

Soon, physical therapy is the last thing on his mind. When an act of betrayal brings the truths they both fear to light, Cole will have to fight for the first time in his life…not just for his career, but for Everly’s love.

Visit Raine’s

And follow her on Twitter @Raine_Thomas

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EXCERPT: Forbidden Call by Martha Bourke – FREE Today Only!

Posted on August 29, 2013 Written by
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Forbidden-Call-FINAL-201x300FORBIDDEN CALL – FREE TODAY at Amazon

Materializing just outside Victrixa’s office, Ana stopped and listened for a moment. She could hear Victrixa’s voice down the hall, so she gleamed in, held the camera in her hand and gleamed it behind a crack in the plaster. She pocketed the other camera and gleamed back to the closet at the mansion.

And found herself standing face to face with SE.

He leaned against the doorjamb. “Hi. Have a good time?”

Damnit!

Her mouth dried up instantly. “I…”

But her mate didn’t say anything. He just turned and walked out of the closet.

She followed him. “SE?”

His back to her, he shook his head. “You know what? Don’t…don’t tell me where you’ve been. I’m not sure I want to hear it.”

“What? Like you have to know where I am every second of the day now? I was gone an hour!”

“No.” He turned around slowly. “You weren’t just gone an hour. You were gone and you left fully armed!”

Oh, God. This was so not good. This isn’t what she’d wanted. “I went to see my tech guy to pick up some equipment I thought we could use.”

“And then where did you go?”

“What?”

“I sincerely doubt the pistol was meant for your tech guy.”

Her chest was heaving like she couldn’t get enough air and her legs were slowly going numb. But she would not lie to her mate. “I put a mini cam in Victrixa’s office.”

The sound of his roar and the crunch that followed were so loud she wasn’t sure what they were at first.

“Damnit!” SE yelled, shaking out the hand that just seriously injured the wall.

Ana’s body went cold and she started to shake all over. Only she wasn’t afraid of him. She was afraid he would leave. The thought was so raw it made her nauseous. She covered her eyes with her hands and cried.

 

SE flexed his hand a few times and looked over at his female.

“Aw, come here.”

“I’m really sorry,” she said, collapsing into his arms.

“I know,” he said gently.

“I don’t…I’m not…”

“Shh, it’s okay. I’m sorry.” Sorry was right. He could write a freaking book. How to Scare the Shit Out of Your Female in Three Easy Steps. He’d gotten so damn wound up after searching the house for her that he’d gone off like a bomb. Getting a handle on New Breed instincts was turning out to be a real bastard. He picked her up and carried her to the bed, then sat her down on his lap and waited for her to cry it out. When she lifted her head up off his shoulder, he dried her cheeks with his fingers and waited for her to speak.

She stared down at her lap and fidgeted with her hands. “I didn’t think. I should have known that when you woke up, you’d miss me and worry. I just…”

“Hey, I get it. You’ve never had to think about anyone else before. It’s a big change. It’s just…I thought you were with X, so when no one knew where you were, I lost it. Why, Ana? Why would you risk going anywhere near her?”

“I don’t know. I knew the job would only take a few seconds.”

“Seconds? You didn’t place the camera?”

“No, I did.”

“But that takes time and tools.”

Ana shook her head. “Watch.”

She opened her hand and the TV remote appeared in her palm.

SE jumped. “Ihkweea, did you just gleam that?”

She nodded.

“How long have you been able to do that?”

“Actually, I don’t know. Last month, sometime, I was starving from fighting all night, but I didn’t have any cash. Then I gleamed a Snickers from a vending machine without meaning to.”  They both grinned. “That’s the first time it happened. I wasn’t hiding it, honest. I never really use it. So, see, it was just a few seconds.”

She put her hand in her pocket and brought out a mini cam. “I brought the other one back here.”

SE slid his hands along her jaw. “Repeat after me. I, Ana Mata, will never go near my batshit crazy mother again.”

Ana smiled. “I, Ana Aguilar, will…what you said.”

Hearing her use his father’s surname made him so proud, he could have wept right there. Shifters didn’t usually bother with formalities like taking a mate’s name, but he knew what she meant. She was saying she was his. He pulled her to him. Goddamn, he couldn’t have stayed mad at her if he tried.

“Oh, your hand,” Ana said, lifting it to inspect it.

“It’s fine. You know what? I slept through breakfast. Can I interest you in some lunch, female?”

“Hell, yes. Just let me change real quick.”

He looked at the wall where he’d hit it. “And then I think I should probably fix Dimitri’s wall.”

FORBIDDEN CALL – FREE TODAY at Amazon

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Martha

Martha Bourke grew up in Burlington, Vermont, often considered a hub of “free thinking.” She was encouraged to write and be creative at a very young age. Martha also had her father’s talent for languages, which later became her career. She spent fifteen years creating and teaching in foreign language programs for young children. She continued to write on the side, trying out a variety of fiction genres. Then she discovered paranormal romance. She was hooked!

Martha and her husband of thirteen years have carved out their own little piece of Vermont in the Massachusetts countryside. When not writing, she loves spending time with her animals, listening to good music, and reading. Her new release, Forbidden Call, is the first book in a new adult paranormal romance series called the New Breed Novels. Look for Book 2 in the new adult series at the end of the summer. Jaguar Hunter, Book 3 in the Jaguar Sun series will be out in early 2014.

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