Category: suspense

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

Nike Chillemi, Author, Publisher

On By Betty OwensIn author, Crime Fictionista, Grace Awards, Harmful Intent, Nike Chillemi, Publisher, Sanctuary Point, suspense, Writing4 Comments

I became acquainted with Nike Chillemi on an ACFW critique loop. So I was privileged to read her suspenseful stories before they went through the publishing process. I was in the background, watching and waiting as she started her publishing company. I waited for the book I’d so enjoyed critiquing, Harmful Intent.

I’m so excited for her to share a little of her story here today. Thanks, Nike for taking the time to answer my questions about your publishing journey.

*She’s giving away the ebook, Harmful Intent, to one of our readers (see details below).

1. Why did you decide to start your own publishing company?

Nike: It started with the moniker Crime Fictionista. Before I started seriously writing for publication, I worked in the bridal industry. I traveled to industry bridal fairs in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, and of course in my home town, New York City. That’s where I heard the term “fashionista.” When I got my first contract, I jokingly called myself a crime fictionista and it stuck. I liked the name and thought it would be just the thing to publish under when I went indie. So, the name of my company is Crime Fictionista Press. BTW, if you notice detailed descriptions of fabrics, necklines, and the like in my stories, that is a throwback to my days in bridal.
http://crimefictionistapress.wordpress.com/


2. How do you stand out from other small publishers?

Nike: Crime Fictionista Press has only one name on its author list, one author…moi. The name is part of my brand and is identified with me. So, that, in and of itself makes it stand out. At present it has only one title as well: HARMFUL INTENT, a Veronica “Ronnie” Ingels/Dawson Hughes Novel. ~ Betrayal runs in private investigator 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. 
My very talented daughter Delayne drew the Crime Fictionista Press logo.   

3. How did you get started? (Research? Study? Jump in and learn along the way?

Nike: I was quite naïve and simply started writing. I still keep my first manuscript around for a good laugh. I didn’t understand character point-of-view. Didn’t know what head hopping was. But I caught on quickly. I took the free online writing course then offered by Harlequin. I also came across a quote, by Stephen King, I believe, advising writers to read the best authors in their genre. To read the authors who excite them, whose book they can’t put down. He wasn’t advising to copy a bestselling author, but to see how they construct things. One aspect of Michael Connelly’s writing I’ve noticed is he doesn’t waste anything. In one novel, I think it was LOST LIGHT (there are so many Harry Bosch novels) Harry drinks a can of soda. He loses hold of it and it falls over the side of his deck into the weeds below his house, hanging over a canyon. Later when the bad guys come to kill him, he flees with a younger, faster bad guy following him under the house. The bad guy trips on the soda can and Harry lives long enough for the police to arrive. I’ve done things like that a few times in my novels, and it tickles me every time I do.

4. What are some of the obstacles you have encountered?

Nike: When I first started out, things I thought were obstacles were simply part of the process. Everybody has to pay their dues. The publishing business is changing so quickly the biggest obstacle is to keep informed and one step ahead. 


5.  Everyone always likes to share their horror stories, so let’s go another way. What has been your greatest blessing since you started your publishing company?


Nike: My blessings started before my publishing company. My greatest blessing since I started writing seriously has been the friendship of other writers, most of them Christian fiction writers, but not all. You, Betty, are one of them. I can’t tell you what the support, encouragement, and the laughs shared with other authors means to me.

*Crime Fictionista Press would like to give away an ebook for Kindle 

to the most interesting, creative, and engaging comment.

A Bit About Nike –
Like so many writers, Nike Chillemi started writing at a very young age. She still has the Crayola, fully illustrated book she penned (colored might be more accurate) as a little girl about her then off-the-chart love of horses. Today, you might call her a crime fictionista. Her passion is crime fiction. She likes her bad guys really bad and her good guys smarter and better.
Nike is the founding board member of the Grace Awards and is its Chairman, a reader’s choice awards for excellence in Christian fiction. She writes book reviews for The Christian Pulse online magazine. She was an Inspy Awards 2010 judge in the Suspense/Thriller/Mystery category, a judge in the 2011, 2012, and 2013 Carol Awards in the suspense, mystery, and romantic suspense categories, and a judge in the Eric Hoffer Awards in 2012 and 2013. 
Her four novel Sanctuary Point series, set in the mid-1940s has won awards and garnered critical acclaim. Her new contemporary whodunit, HARMFUL INTENT released under the auspices of her own publishing company, Crime Fictionista Press, made an impressive showing in Amazon’s mystery > private investigator category.
She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and Christian Indie Novelists (CHIN). http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/

 

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

A Writer’s Life – In Pursuit of Dreams – Elizabeth Noyes

On By Betty OwensIn A Dozen Apologies, author, dreamer, dreams, Elizabeth Noyes, fantasy, fiction, Harriet Tubman, Interview, March, mystery, suspense, Write Integrity Press, writer4 Comments

  • Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world. ––Harriet Tubman

A writer’s life is built on dreams. We learn to weave fine threads of fact and fantasy into stories to entertain, to educate, and to inspire. During the month of March, I’m stepping aside to allow four fellow writers a chance to tell about their particular journeys through the fanciful world of fiction, romance, mystery, and suspense. 


Elizabeth Noyes debuted in February in the collaborative novella, A Dozen Apologies, from Write Integrity Press. She has kindly consented to an interview. I hope you’ll enjoy her candid answers as much as I did.

Would you consider yourself a dreamer?

Elizabeth: The banner on my website reads – Professional Writer. Aspiring Author. Dedicated Dreamer – so yes, I do consider myself a dreamer.

Daydreams or night dreams? How else do you come up with ideas?

Elizabeth: Daydreams, night dreams, the daily grind, and a troupe of characters who’ve come to life in my head help me write. Seriously, ideas come all the time: two women hug and – poof! Long lost sisters separated at birth are reunited at the reading of a will. An abandoned car on the side of the road becomes a woman fleeing from an abusive marriage. Or a mother feeding her toddler bits of food in a restaurant morphs into a young woman traumatized by an attack that left her unable to have children…except now she’s stolen someone else’s child for her own. Ideas are everywhere. All we have to do is see them and play the what-if game. 

It’s the nighttime, though, when my scenes come together. For more years than I care to count, I’ve composed scenes, complete with dialogue and action, while “sleeping.” Experts today call it Focused Dreaming. I call it designing my own pleasant (or sometimes not so pleasant) stories. At other times, all I have to do is sit down at the keyboard and my characters write their own story. Sometimes I have to throw the outline out and let them have their way. It makes for an interesting ride, sort of like reading a new book because you have no idea where it’s going to take you.

What steps do you take to bring your dreams to life?

Elizabeth: Using a scene conjured up from something in real life, I envision the characters’ physical and temperamental characteristics, add dialogue, spice it up with a bit of action and angst, and let it play like a movie through my head. Somehow it stays cemented in my brain until I can get it down on paper. That usually gives me the germ of an idea.

From there, I need visual confirmation. The next step is a visit to Mr. Google for images – young woman with blue eyes, man in suit, blond-haired toddler, crooked-tooth smile, black truck, red sports car, mountains, dogs, and even particular pieces of clothing. If I can see I can describe it, and the possibilities are endless. Next is the character study where my hero and heroine (and sometimes villain) comes to life. I use a comprehensive list of interview questions to get to know them. After that, I may write their backstory. It takes longer, but it makes my characters real people with a history and memories and hang-ups. I can often use bits and pieces of their background in the story.

Filling in the middle: how do you keep yourself moving forward?

Elizabeth: Wow, let’s talk discipline now. I have my outline, complete with inciting incident, plot, story arc, a few scenes already in mind, and how the story ends. I have my visuals. I have some scenes. To make it all work (for me) requires immersion in the story. I’m not one of those lucky writers who can slap/dash off a chapter in 30 minutes here or an hour there. I need large chunks of time. I become the characters. I’m in the action. Time becomes another dimension for me. I’ve given my husband permission to poke me if I don’t move for six hours, but he’s never to question my tears, hysterical laughter, or odd contortions as I put my boys and girls through their paces. He does give me strange looks now and then. LOL


Do you have any advice for other dreamers?

Elizabeth: I have a quote on my website that speaks to this question. “Dreams are stories set down on paper.” Scads of books and classes are available claiming to know the one sure-fire way to write a successful novel. What I’ve learned is there is no one-size-fits-all. I encourage everyone, not just writers, to believe in their dreams.


Elizabeth Noyes is a professional writer, aspiring author, dedicated dreamer—lives in northeast Atlanta with her husband and best friend, who listens tirelessly while she tells him all the stories clamoring to get out of her head and onto paper. Her days and nights are a balancing act between working full-time, entertaining three grandchildren, participating in church, and a demand (her own) to write, write, write. She is also an avid reader across many genres.

A Dozen Apologies, a novella collaboration created with 11 other authors, is her first published work. It releases on Amazon February 14, 2014. Her first full-length novel, a romantic suspense entitled Imperfect Wings, will be out later this year.

                                                           www.twitter.com/ENoyes5246

The Skinny on Some Christmas Traditions, by Nike Chillemi

On By Betty OwensIn Amazon, books, Christian, Christmas, historical, Holidays, Nike Chillemi, suspense5 Comments
http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/

I’m so glad you stopped by today. It is with great pleasure I welcome Nike Chillemi as a guest writer. I am so honored to promote her latest release, Goodbye Noel. As you may have guessed, it has a holiday theme. Nike writes historical suspense/crime novels and she’s such a good storyteller! If the reviews (found here) are any indication, this one doesn’t disappoint.  

Nike Chillemi- 

In popular publications we’ve been told umpteen times the first “Christmas” celebrations came from the mid-fourth century during Constantine’s rule in ancient Rome and were adopted and adapted from solar pagan rites. This is not entirely accurate.
There is evidence the Ethiopian Church celebrated the birth of Jesus on December 25th in the 2nd century. Other Eastern churches in the second and third centuries determined the birth of Jesus to be January 5th or January 6th. The Eastern Church still celebrates the birth of Jesus on January 6th, while in the Western Church that date is Epiphany. These December 25th calculations came wholly from church history and heritage (much of that oral). This was before and separate from the papacy decision to declare December 25th the birth of Jesus for conversion reasons. The second century Egyptian theologian, Clement of Alexandria, wrote that ancient Egyptian church scholars practically tried to outdo each other with efforts to pinpoint the date of the birth of Jesus. They also came up with April 20th or 21st and May 20th…all of this having nothing to do with Roman paganism. Is December 25th the actual birthday of Jesus? I don’t know. To me every day is Christ’s birthday. 
It’s true worship of the oak and other trees were quite common in pagan Europe. However, the modern Christmas tree originated in Germany where legend has it St. Boniface cut down a great oak under which human sacrifices were made. Supposedly, in its place a tiny pine sapling grew the following spring and Boniface remarked it pointed to the heavens. That autumn he dug up the small tree and brought it into his house to have for Christmas. Many claimed these trees’ triangular shape signified the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The custom of a potted fir tree in the house at Christmas rapidly spread among Germanic Christians. In time they began decorating trees with bits of sugar candy which they gave to children on Christmas day. That tradition soon evolved into candy canes on tree boughs. Soon other gifts such as dried fruit and small bits of jewelry found their way onto trees.
Then in the 17th century, on a walk home from church late one night before Christmas, Martin Luther passed a grove of evergreen trees. When he looked up, it seemed as if the stars adorned the trees. He immediately cut and decorated a tree with lit candles for the Christmas Eve service. Cut and candle-lit trees quickly spread among Germanic Christians. When Germany’s Prince Albert married the love of his life, the young Queen Victoria, he brought to England the practice of decorating the Christmas tree with candles, candies, fancy cakes, small gifts, and toys. German immigrants brought this to Pennsylvania in the 1800s and the custom rapidly spread across America.
Eggnog is entirely American. While it’s true Europeans of wealth enjoyed eggy-milky drinks with fruit. The first true batch of eggnog was mixed up in 1607 at Captain John Smith’s Jamestown settlement. At that time it was called “egg and grog.” I’m sure we can all imagine what the ingredients were, as colonists called any drink with rum grog. It soon became a drink given to carolers at Christmas along with sweet meats and confections.
Stock.Xchng image #1148932
What about ye olde fruit cake? Cakes with fruit have been baked, well…as long as cakes have been baked. What we think of as the fruit cake, made with preserved fruit and nuts goes back to the middle-ages and the Crusades when people took this type of hearty cake on trips to sustain themselves while away from home. The British love affair with fruit cake began in the 1400s when dried fruits first arrived in the misty isles from the Mediterranean. In the mid-1800s cake with candied fruit had become a Victorian tea cake. It also became a cake served at weddings. Naturally in a time before fruit could be flown to markets from orchards and groves in a warm climate, the candied fruit cake made a perfect Christmas cake. In modern times it seems not to be as popular as years gone by, but fruit cake sales are still surprisingly high.
Whether you’re looking for a good holiday read, or the perfect gift, Nike Chillemi’s Goodbye Noel is a good fit. 


Links to order the book:

Amazon – ($2.99)                          Christianbooks – ($2.89)

Nike Chillemi has been called a crime fictionista due to her passion for crime fiction. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and the Edgy Christian Fiction Lovers (Ning). She was an Inspy Awards 2010 judge in the Suspense/Thriller/Mystery category and a judge in the 2011 Carol Awards in the suspense, mystery, and romantic suspense categories. She is the founding board member of the Grace Awards, a reader’s choice awards for excellence in Christian fiction. She writes monthly book reviews for The Christian Pulse online magazine. Burning Hearts is the first book in the crime wave that is sweeping the south shore of Long Island in The Sanctuary Point series. 

Fruitcake photo from: Stock.Xchng image #1148932