Jul 8, 2013

In the Spotlight - Jess Buffett

Welcome this Week’s Featured Author






CONTEST: Comment below for a chance to win an eBook copy of Dmitri’s Little Spitfire and $5 Strandbucks. Remember to leave your email address.
Contest ends Saturday, July 12th at Midnight.


ABOUT

Jess Buffett was born and raised in New South Wales, Australia. She married her high school sweetheart and they live on the Central Coast with their two children. Jess is a hopeless romantic who loves stories about true love that sizzle with a happy ending—which is probably a good thing given what she writes. She is a huge fan of M/M and M/F romance—anything with hunky men in all their glory, whether they be shifters, vampires, cowboys, or the boy next door. Jess is a firm believer in soul mates, happily-ever-afters, and love at first sight, but that sometimes people need a second or a third meeting for the brain to catch up.


Hunter Clan 3

Coming Wednesday July 10th


Elijah Collins is ashamed. Used to hurt his friends by Potestas, he now finds it hard to even look someone in the face. Especially Dmitri, his mate. When a truth about Elijah is discovered, Potestas also find out. Now that they know his true worth, he becomes an even bigger target than before.
Dimitri Kalas has always prided himself on being calm and in control. It is his job to help protect his Clan, and most importantly his mate. But when he finds out that the people responsible for hurting his Kayan’s mate have also been abusing his mate, he becomes incensed.
Will Dimitri be able to convince his mate that he is worth love and forgiveness? Or will Elijah allow his guilt to consume him and turn himself over to the enemy in order to keep his friends safe?



EXCERPT

“Tell me what he is,” he demanded.

“Okay, okay,” the other man wheezed. “I’ll tell you.”

Leaning forward, Dmitri held his breath as the pungent smell of the other man’s breath washed over him. Shock froze him still as the man’s whispered words registered in his ears. Pulling back he stared down at the man he held by the collar, unable to believe what he had just been told. It was all the other man needed to knock him down, Dmitri receiving a blow to the temple.

The stranger jumped to his feet, heading toward the house, and Dmitri didn’t pause to think, shifting into his wolf and giving chase. As his wolf took over, the only thing on his mind was taking out the threat to his mate. He was no longer in control. The enemy had to die.

His clothes tore, his bones cracked, and by the time Dmitri was finished he stood as a six-foot-long wolf. The brown-and-gray hairs of his coat stood on edge as his vision focused on the man running toward the direction of his mate. Reaching the other wolf with unnatural speed, Dmitri leapt into the air, sinking his canines into flesh as he took the other man down. Howling and screaming echoed in his ears, the taste of copper in his mouth and Dmitri only tore deeper until the man lay limp in his arms. It was only the voice of his Kayan that brought him back. Jake stood beside him, calming his nerves.

“It’s okay, Dmitri. You did well. Your mate is safe,” Jake whispered to him. “Come back so that you can hold him in your arms, my friend.”
He let out a whine, wanting to see his mate. Letting the shift happen, Dmitri changed back into his human form, shivering from the chill on his now naked body.

“Elijah,” he gasped.

Jake quirked an eyebrow. “Your mate’s fine. Want to tell me what just happened?”

Remembering what the Wolf had told him, Dmitri shook his head at his Kayan. “I know what he is.”

Getting to his feet, Dmitri barely acknowledged Jake or the others as he raced his way to his mate. As he weaved through the corridors his heart beat frantically. If what the intruder said was true, and Potestas had found out, then they were all in for a world of trouble. When more people found out what Elijah was, they would come for him. And Dmitri would die before he let that happened.

Banging on the doors, it didn’t take long for Lucas to open up, an eyebrow raised as Dmitri pushed past him.

“Jake said you were on your way and that you were on one hell of a mission. What happened?” Lucas asked, cocking his head to the side and studying Dmitri.

Dmitri knew what the older man saw. His body was tense and alert, aware of its surroundings as he frantically searched for his mate. When his eyes fell on Elijah huddled on the lounge with Sawyer and Riley, eyes wide but safe, he calmed. No longer on overload he made his way over to his mate, studying every inch of the younger man’s body, looking for some sign that what he had been told was true. Dmitri saw none, and dragged his gaze up Elijah’s small, firm body to lock eyes with him. And that’s when it clicked.
His eyes. So beautiful and hypnotising. And so different. The iridescent orbs shimmering like glittering lights… or the scales of a creature thought extinct.

“Dmitri?”

Elijah’s timid voice drew him from his musings, but not from his fear of what people might do if they found out.

He watched as Elijah stood slowly from the lounge, closing the distance Dmitri had been unable to cross in his shock. “What’s wrong? Why are you staring at me like that?”

Before Dmitri could get the words out, Jake barged into the room, glaring at him. “Could you please explain how a little slime like that was able to knock down my Yabyu? You probably had a hundred pounds on the bastard. And what was with you storming off like that? We hadn’t even secured the fucking area yet.”

Jake was pissed, and he understood why, but now wasn’t the time.

Elijah’s small hands touching him all over drew his attention. He was surprised to see the younger man with tears in his eyes as he seemingly checked Dmitri for injury. “You were hurt? Where? Come sit down, I need to check you.”

Placing a hand over one of Elijah’s, Dmitri tried to soothe him. “I’m okay, Can.

“Then what’s wrong?”

Dmitri didn’t know how to break something like this gently to his mate, but after everything Elijah had been through, he figured the honesty would be welcomed. “The Wolf I was fighting, he said they were here for you, that they knew what you were.”

“That’s why they attacked? The others put up too much of a fight, we couldn’t get anything out of them,” Jake said, a look of concern crossing his face as he scooped his son into his arms and joined Sawyer who held their daughter. By this point a large group had gathered in the former Kayan’s suite.

“Would somebody please tell me what I am?” his mate pleaded, gnawing at his bottom lip.


THE INSIDE SCOOP

Ø How do you keep your characters and stories organized?

I have a love hate relationship with Excel for keeping everything organized. I love it because it keeps everything set out and easy to read, but I hate it because I’m forever forgetting to put in all the little things that change by the end of the story.

Ø Are you a Swooper (write first, edit later,) a Basher (edit each sentence as you go,) or both?

I’m a Swooper. If I stop to edit my work as I’m writing it then I’d probably never finish the story. Lol

Ø What is the one thing you must have to be able to write?

Lately it has to be silence. If something is going on then I get distracted to easily.

Ø Did you have any bad habits when you began writing? How did you correct those habits?

I did a lot of “Telling’ instead of “Showing” as they say. It was I really hard habit to break, but I think I’ve done pretty well. I had one Editor really help me with it, and now I have her voice in my head when I write saying, “Are we showing or telling?”

Ø What are you currently working on? How is it different from other books you’ve written?

I’m currently working on Hunter Clan 5 and a new MM series so far titled Order Of The Sciath. There is also a little work being done on the first Vaucluse Coven, however I need to complete HC5 before I finish that one.
For a little something different, I’ve just finished the first book in my MF series Sons Of The Seven as well.

Ø When and where can readers look forward to seeing you this year?

Since I’m in Australia, it will be a while before I can make it to the US or anywhere else, but we do have an MM meet here in Australia that I will be attending in October, so that should be a tone of fun!

Ø What is your least favorite part of the writing process?

The synopsis. When you finish you’re jumping up and down, doing a happy dance, then you have to stop and go, “Well, crap. I now have to condense my 30k + story into 300 words.”

CONTEST: Comment below for a chance to win an eBook copy of Dmitri’s Little Spitfire and $5 Strandbucks. Remember to leave your email address.
Contest ends Saturday, July 12th at Midnight.















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