Category: contemporary

Becky Wade – Authorview

On By Betty OwensIn #amreading, author, Authorview, award-winning, contemporary, historical, Romance2 Comments
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Becky Wade

Welcome to Authorview, Becky Wade. She is an award-winning writer of historical fiction and contemporary romance. Her latest novel, Book 3 of The Porter Family Novels, released May 5, 2015 –  A Love Like Ours (see below for details). I’m so excited to host one of my mom’s favorite writers! Can you tell I’m excited? I used an exclamation point to illustrate it. I know you will love her candid answers to my questions. Then read her bio, follow the link to her website and check out her books. If you’ve never read a Becky Wade novel, you’re missing out.

So Becky, tell us about yourself–

I am a…Mom, wife, writer, chocoholic. Just typing the word ‘chocoholic’ makes me wonder how many steps are currently separating me from the chocolate in my pantry….

You would like me when I’ve…Just finished a yoga class. I’m quite peaceful for the five minutes afterward.

You wouldn’t like me when I’m…Still trying to wake up in the morning. The process takes about two hours. It involves a lot of rushing around, trying to get the kids to school on time, and very little conversation.

What qualities I like to see in others:    Humor. An open, genuine spirit. Humility. Warmth. Kindness.

Favorite way to spend an evening:  At a show! It’s a rare treat for me, but I love to see musicals performed live.

Who I love to spend an evening with:  My husband.

Am reading:  A romance novel that I’m judging for RWA’s RITA awards.

If I had a hammer…I’d give it to someone interested in using it to repair my patio.

My favorite genre is: Romance.

My work-in-progress: Is a contemporary Christian romance that will become the fourth and final book in my Texas-set Porter Family series.

My favorite food is: Chocolate.

I’m a collector of:    Chocolate. I also collect Department 56 Dickens Village pieces and set them up each December for Christmas.

My favorite happily-ever-after:    My great grandparents had a wonderful, joyful, long marriage full of family and faith. I can remember them laughing together and the closeness and trust of their relationship. My great grandmother passed away first, my great grandfather soon after. It was almost as if, once she went to heaven, he was extraordinarily impatient to join her there.

I inherited their wedding band when I was a teenager. Years later, I had the inside of the ring inscribed with their initials and their wedding date in 1919. It became my own wedding band when I married and I’ve been wearing it ever since.

Betty: What a wonderful story! And readers, do you get the feeling she likes chocolate? I think the message is very clear. Becky, thank you so much for participating in Authorview. 

Now — more about Becky Wade:

Becky’s a California native who attended Baylor University, met and married a Texan, and settled in Dallas.  She published historical romances for the general market before putting her career on hold for several years to care for her three children.  When God called her back to writing, Becky knew He meant for her to turn her attention to Christian fiction.  She loves penning funny, modern, and inspirational contemporary romance!  She’s the Carol Award and Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award winning author of My Stubborn Heart, Undeniably Yours, Meant to Be Mine, and A Love Like Ours.

A Love Like Ours

LoveLikeOurs_mck.inddFormer Marine Jake Porter has far deeper scars than the one that marks his face. He struggles with symptoms of PTSD, lives a solitary life, and avoids relationships.

When Lyndie James, Jake’s childhood best friend, lands back in Holley, Texas, Jake cautiously hires her to exercise his Thoroughbreds. Lyndie is tender-hearted, fiercely determined, and afraid of nothing, just like she was as a child. Jake pairs her with Silver Leaf, a horse full of promise but lacking in results, hoping she can solve the mystery of the stallion’s reluctance to run.

Though Jake and Lyndie have grown into very different adults, the bond that existed during their childhood still ties them together. Against Jake’s will, Lyndie’s sparkling, optimistic personality begins to tear down the walls he’s built around his heart. A glimmer of the hope he’d thought he’d lost returns, but fears and regrets still plague him. Will Jake ever be able to love Lyndie like she deserves, or is his heart too shattered to mend?

http://www.beckywade.com/my_books.html

Fay Lamb – Authorview

On By Betty OwensIn Authorview, contemporary, Fay Lamb, fiction, Florida Gators, Keychain Productions, Longmire, Romance, suspense3 Comments
Fay Lamb

I’m a fan of Fay Lamb‘s – I love her writing, and have read all of her published books except one. We’ve found so many weird connections in our lives, we’ve decided we’re twins, separated at birth. Only she was born several years before me (actually, it’s the other way round, I’m the eldest). I recently met Fay Lamb in person, after a cyber friendship that spans several years. It was as if we’d known each other all our lives. Fay has a gift for making people laugh, and also for pricking your heart. I hope you enjoy her answers to my questions.

I am: Baby Fay or Fay Fay. These are names from my childhood. Baby Fay is precious to me because my grandmother was called Big Fay by my four cousins, and I smile every time I think of my mother exclaiming, “If you refer to your grandmother by her given name, I will kick you into next week.”

My best trait: I believe I’m friendly for the most part, unless something upsets me politically or if someone disparages the University of Florida Gators.

My bad habit: While I consider myself someone who can look at both sides of the issues, I do have some key triggers upon which I do not budge, and it has been said that I don’t lack an opinion on those things.


Qualities I admire: I admire honesty, integrity, and someone who offers a smile or better yet can get me to laugh.


What I like to read: I’m reading a lot, but I think that my favorite stories are young adult novels that transcend the age group and books that make me smile or laugh my way through them (because they are truly funny and not because they are poorly written).


What I write: I write contemporary fiction, contemporary romance, and romantic suspense.


What I watch: Oh, boy. Are you ready for this eclectic list in the order of favorites: Longmire, Finding Big Foot, Mountain Monsters, Ghost Hunters, and well-written short films, which I’m usually introduced to through my favorite short-film makers, Keychain Productions.


My family: I have two married sons and six grandchildren (three boys and three girls). Oh, yeah, and I have a longsuffering husband.


My favorite food, snack, or beverage: Moonlight Drive-In sweet iced tea with extra ice and ice cream.

What I love to do: I love to write and to work with authors.

What I admire: Beautiful settings, friendly people.


What makes me happy: My husband would say nothing makes me happy, but I always rejoice when someone tells me that something I have written has ministered to or been a joy to them.

What makes me sad: Right now, I’m the saddest over the changes I see in America, its people, and its freedom. I’m sad that the First Amendment right is being taken away from us by rhetoric labeled political correctness, and I’m sad that those who cry out for the rights afforded us under the Second Amendment are more concerned with the fact that they won’t be able to hunt more than they are concerned with the true reason we have that amendment: to protect our nation from enemies within and without.

Sorry, I got a little political there, but this truly the thing that makes me saddest because if we continue on this road or children and grandchildren may face more than the loss of their freedoms.

I believe: After all that I mention above, I do believe that my God is the One True God. That He is a sovereign God, and that He has all things in control. I believe that the hateful “gods” of others are dead and of none affect until the great enemy Satan invades the cause and takes the form of those “gods.” But again, I believe what God declares in His word. Satan and evil will be defeated.

 Thanks, Fay!


Fay Lamb’s emotionally charged stories remind the reader that God is always in the details. Fay has contracted with Write Integrity Press for three series. Stalking Willow and Better than Revenge Books 1 and 2 in the Amazing Grace romantic suspense series are currently available for purchase. 

Charisse and Libby, Books 1 and 2 of The Ties That Bind contemporary romance series have been released and are currently available for purchase.

Future Write Integrity Press releases from Fay are: Everybody’s Broken and Frozen Notes, Books 3 and 4 of Amazing Grace and Hope and Delilah, Books 3 and 4 from The Ties That Bind. Also, look for Book 1 in Fay’s Serenity Key series entitled Storms in Serenity.

Fay and her husband, Marc, reside in Titusville, Florida, where multi-generations of their families have lived. The legacy continues with their two married sons and six grandchildren.

Libby Overstreet can’t see herself as anything but shy and socially awkward. She’s nearing thirty, and she’s never even been on a date. Then she meets the man of her dreams, but Libby knows he would never be interested in a wallflower like her. All she wants to do is to buy that garden nursery on the outskirts of town and settle down with the life she has always dreamed about. Evan Carter has been watching the sweet woman in the coffee shop for weeks when his friend tells him that the object of his affection plans to buy a garden nursery and needs Evan’s expertise as an architect/contractor. When they meet, Libby is more enamored of Evan and even more convinced that he would never look at her as anything but a friend. However, that’s far from the truth. Evan would love to get to know the innocent beauty God has placed in this path. Trouble is, he fears that a lovely flower like Libby will wilt under the sins of his past, and he’ll do everything in his power to keep that from happening.

Links for Fay:
http://faylamb.com (Fay’s website and blog: On the Ledge)
http://facebook.com/fay.lamb (personal FB page)
http://facebook.com/AuthorFay (Fay’s fan page)
http://twitter.com/FayLamb (Fay’s Twitter address)
http://faylamb.com/innersource/ (Inner Source Blog)
http://tacticaleditor.faylamb.com/ and http://facebook.com/TacticalEd
http://faylamb.com/ontheledge/on-the-ledge/
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1482814.Fay_Lamb

A Writer’s Life – In Pursuit of Dreams – Nike Chillemi

On By Betty OwensIn Brooklyn, Colin Powell, contemporary, Crime, dreamer, Ellen Sallas, fiction, historical, investigator, Nike Chillemi, novel, Romance, suspense, Texas, western, writer, Writing4 Comments

•A Dream doesn’t become reality through magic, it takes sweat, determination and hard work. ––Colin Powell

I’m fascinated by those who weave good suspense stories. How do they come up with some of their ideas?  Nike Chillemi is one of those writers who “fashions” her stories of suspense and intrigue complete with enough twists and turns to keep the reader guessing until the end. And she isn’t above adding a dash of humor into the mix. It’s been my honor to be among her critiquers the last couple of years and let me tell you, it’s not a chore.

So how did she answer my questions? Let’s find out…

Would you consider yourself a dreamer? 
Nike: I’d consider myself a grounded realist with a great imagination. When I was much younger I was a dreamer, often lost in my own thoughts, my own reality. I think that was good, and was the foundation for my creativity. But the toughness of life and life’s lessons has brought me down to earth. Now I think more in terms of purpose and vision.
Daydreams or night dreams? How else do you come up with ideas? 
Nike: Interestingly enough, I often come up with ideas, sometimes entire scenes either right before bed or when waking up. If I don’t have a notebook at bedside to write it down, I’ll run straight to my computer before I forget. I also get great ideas for my novels in the shower. I think my demeanor at bedtime and in the shower must be very relaxed. Those are times when the cares of the day fade away and cease crowding my mind. So, creativity is better able to flow.

 What steps do you take to bring your purpose and vision to life? 
Nike: I’ve put in the time and honed my craft. When I started out, I took a free online writing course given by Harlequin. I still use a modified version of the character information sheet they offered in that course. I participate in author discussions online to keep up with industry trends, and I read articles on the ins-and-outs of publishing. In addition, of course, I write, write, and write.
Filling in the middle: How do you keep yourself moving forward? 
Nike: I’m excited by the novels I have inside me. I have a great desire to see them in print and to have people reading them. I hate it when newbie authors says, “God told me to write this book,” and then of course, it needs a great deal of rewriting. However, my desire to have my books in print and to have them read has sustained itself. It is the desire of my heart. So, I do believe God placed that desire there.
    My big dream right now is to see my new contemporary whodunit, HARMFUL INTENT, released. This novel is the introduction to my new mystery series which will have tons of thrills and chills, lots of action, as well as laugh-out-loud humor. Each novel will have its own male and female investigator main characters, so natch, there will be romance at various levels, depending upon the personality and life situation of the characters. I’m very excited and have big dreams for this new series.
Do you have any advice for other dreamers? 
Nike: Keep dreaming. It’s fun to dream and stirs up creativity. But don’t fly so high that you never touch the ground. You have to have you feet on the ground to take the practical steps necessary to have your dreams become a reality.
Find and connect with Nike Chillemi here:
Nike Chillemi ~ Crime Fictionista http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nike.chillemi
Coming soon from Nike Chillemi: 
Harmful Intent  Betrayal runs in private investigator Veronica “Ronnie” Ingels’ family. So, why is she surprised when her husband of one year cheats on her? The real shock is his murder, with the local lawman pegging her as the prime suspect.

Ronnie Ingels is a Brooklyn bred private investigator who travels to west Texas, where her cheating husband is murdered. As she hunts the killer to clear her name, she becomes the hunted.

Deputy Sergeant Dawson Hughes, a former Army Ranger, is a man folks want on their side. Only he’s not so sure at first, he’s on the side of this meddling, female New York PI. As the evidence points away from her, he realizes the more she butts in, the more danger she attracts to herself.
Nike doesn’t have a cover for Harmful Intent at this time. The very talented Ellen Sallas (Ellen C. Maze)* is working on it. Since the novel is set in the horse country of Texas, Nike visited a stable as part of her research. This is one of the photos she took while there. 
“I carry a digital camera with me nearly all the time so I can spontaneously snap photos that are useful for my writing research. This is one way I work. Taking photos helps me focus on my writing project(s) and also helps me dream.” 
 *To see Ellen Sallas’ work http://www.ellencmaze.com/artwork-of-ellen.php