Welcome this Week’s Featured Author
CONTEST: Comment below for a chance to
win an Arkadian Mug. Please leave an email address. Contest ends Saturday, August
17th at Midnight.
ABOUT
Alanea loves reading
almost as much as she loves writing and can be found at any given moment either
in front of the computer lost in her own world or on the couch with her iPad
reading some of her favorite authors. She believes that love truly conquers all
and that everyone no matter what, deserves a chance at that love and a place
they can call home.
Fate Knows Best
Kindred of Arkadia 1
Rebecca Morgan thinks she
knows what she wants out of life, until her life plan goes to hell in a
handbasket. Now she is out looking for adventure. She just doesn’t expect to
discover a shifter-only town and one six-foot-eight, grumpy, bear-shifting
sheriff named Aleksander Arkadion.
Aleksander Arkadion only
wants to date shifter females after working a brutal homicide case that has him
returning to the shifter-only town of his youth. Which is why is he curious to
discover a human in town and shocked when he realizes the tiny woman is his
mate.
As the attraction between
them grows, Aleks realizes that he can’t stay away from the petite female, but
the realization may come too late. Although her body was never in any danger,
he may have destroyed her heart by pushing her away. Now he has to convince his
mate he really does want her while keeping her safe from rogue hyenas bent on
taking her.
Excerpt
“Aleks, hey, buddy,” Liam
said lazily.
“Hey, asshole,” Aleks
replied sounding distracted.
“I just wanted to call and
let you know that you’ll be picking up Rebecca at my house for your date.” Liam
waited. Three, two, one and… He held the phone away from his ear at the roar.
“What the hell is she
doing at your house, cat!” Aleks roared. Liam smiled. He was making this too
easy.
“Well at the moment her
luscious little self is in my shower and wait, yes, I smell coconuts. She’s
bathing.” He held the phone away from his ear again at the roar, unaware that
everyone had stopped what they were doing to listen.
“If you so much as lay one
finger on her, cat, I will rip you apart.” Aleks growled.
“What was that, Rebecca,
you need help getting into your dress? Don’t worry, kitten, I’m coming. Sorry,
Aleks, have to run. Toodles.” He stayed on the line long enough for one last
roar to come through before disconnecting the line.
He turned around whistling
and saw everyone staring.
“What?” he asked
“Aleks Arkadion is going
to kill you,” Ashby said, white as a sheet.
“No he isn’t. If he didn’t
kill me for wrecking his Charger, he won’t kill me now,” he said sitting down
on the sofa. He reached over and grabbed a magazine and started to flip through
the pages.
“That was you?” Rian
asked, his eyes wide.
Liam just chuckled.
* * * *
“Aleks. Can’t. Breathe,”
Liam said as Aleks’s hand squeezed his throat.
Aleks was surprised at the lack
of interference he was getting from the pride. They just shrugged their
shoulders.
“Ashby told him you were
going to kill him,” Rian said.
“Where is Ashby?” Aleks
asked, his hand still around Liam’s throat.
“He’s upstairs finishing
Rebecca’s hair. Nicholas did her makeup. She put in a lot of effort for you,
bear, so you better not fuck this up,” Rian said, his arms crossed.
Aleks raised an eyebrow.
The pride seemed to be more protective of Rebecca than their Alpha, whom he had
pinned to the wall by the throat.
“Oh for God’s sake, Aleks,
let him go! You’ll upset Rebecca and ruin your evening before it begins,” Kate
said, coming down the stairs. Aleks immediately dropped Liam.
“Kate, why are you here?”
he asked.
“Why would I miss the
opportunity for actual girl time? We don’t have much of that at the pack,” she
said, swiping a piece of chocolate.
Aleks opened his mouth to
say something when the door upstairs opened and Rebecca appeared at the top of
the stairs. Her scent hit his nose, and he felt his chest constrict. How could
he have possibly thought he could stay away from her? She made her way down the
stairs with Nicholas and Ashby following behind her. She moved gracefully, and
when she got to the bottom of the stairs, he got the full effect of the dress.
It had tiny spaghetti straps that seemed to accent her shoulders. The black
dress only seemed to display her creamy skin to its every advantage. The lone
slit up one side was nearly his undoing. He didn’t realize he was growling
until Liam hit him in the ribs. Rebecca just blushed and smiled at him.
“Ready?” he asked, holding
out a slightly trembling hand. She nodded and moved forward, taking his hand.
“Goodnight, everyone,
thank you, for everything,” she said, smiling at the room.
“Have her back before
midnight, young man,” Liam said, standing in front of the pair.
“Out of the way, cat,”
Aleks muttered. Rebecca stepped forward and gave him a hug.
Aleks growled. She ignored
him.
“Goodnight, Liam.” She
kissed his cheek. Aleks growled again.
“I’m serious though, if
you don’t want to go back to the bed-and-breakfast we made up a guest room for
you. That’s where Sebastian has been hiding. I let Leona know you may be
staying here,” Liam said, smiling down at her.
“Watch him for me?” she
asked. Liam nodded.
“Who’s Sebastain?” Aleks
asked. Rebecca waved.
“Goodnight, everyone.” She
started walking toward the door.
“Who’s Sebastian?” Aleks
asked again walking out the door with his arm around her waist.
The Inside Scoop
Q. Thinking back on your first book, is there anything
you would have done differently?
A. I probably would have
elaborated a bit more with the ending.
Q. Has your perspective on the writing process changed
since you became published?
A. Yes! I have realized
that in order to write books you have to sit down and write. I’ve also learned
that promoting and networking may be more important than the writing. As a good
friend told me, you may have the world’s best book, but if no one knows about
it, you’ll never be successful.
Q. Do you work best on a deadline, or do you need
freedom from time constraints?
A. I work on a deadline
that I create for myself, but don’t beat myself up if I don’t make it. I still
work a full time job so I know that sometimes life happens.
Q. Is there a word or phrase you catch yourself
overusing?
A. And then…
Q. How do you know you’ve written a good book?
A. When I can’t wait to
re-read it for edits.
Q. How do you keep your characters and stories
organized?
A. I have an excel
spreadsheet divided up by group. It has helped a lot.
Q. Are you a Swooper (write first, edit later,) a
Basher (edit each sentence as you go,) or both?
A. I’m a Swooper!- the
only exception is when I come back to writing and I re-read the last few pages
to get back into the story, then I edit as I read.
Q. What is the one thing you must have to be able to
write?
A. I comfy chair and
coffee/tea/red hots/candy.
Q. Did you have any bad habits when you began writing?
How did you correct those habits?
A. I tended to head hop a
bit. I’m working hard to avoid that now. I sometimes put the person’s name of
the point of view at the top of the page. That has helped a bit.
Q. What are you currently working on? How is it
different from other books you’ve written?
A. I’m working on an
Arkadian book. It’s different in that there is no antagonist.
Q. Is there anything you haven’t written that you would
like to try some day? Why have you avoided it in the past?
A. I’d love to try writing
a paranormal mystery. I just haven’t had time to get to it.
Q. Do you have any rituals, habits, or superstitions
about your writing?
A. I always reach for Red
Hots candies when I get stuck.
Q. What types of scenes are your favorite to write?
A. I love the funny
scenes. The crazier the characters the more fun.
Q. When and where can readers look forward to seeing
you this year?
A. I’m actually taking a
while to myself to really establish myself as a writer. I probably won’t get to
any conventions until mid to late 2014.
Q. Do you feel there is anything the market is
oversaturated with right now?
A. No, but that’s only
because I don’t think you can ever have too many books…ever.
Q. How do you feel about the term “Mommy Porn”?
A. Personally I don’t like
the term. I think it belittles the books that it is meant to represent. No
matter what a person may think the word ‘porn’ carries a negative stigma, I
would never want that anywhere near my writing. I take the time to make sure that
if you took out the sex scenes out of my novels you would still have a good
book.
Q. Do you prefer to write 1st or 3rd Person POV? Why?
A. I currently write in
3rd person, but would like to try a 1st person. 3rd person does help to keep me
separate from how my characters would react.
Q. What do you feel are the most important aspects to a
good romance?
A. That moment when one
character realizes that the other person is their future.
Q. Are you always in the driver’s seat? Or do your
characters drag you along for the ride?
A. I am not only dragged
along for the ride, but they don’t care if they drag me through hedges, mud
puddles or briar patches.
Q. What is your least favorite part of the writing
process?
A. Starting. The first ten
thousand words are the hardest for me, but once events start happening it’s
easy for me to get the story out.
CONTEST: Comment below for a chance to
win an Arkadian Mug. Please leave an email address. Contest ends Saturday, August
17th at Midnight.
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