Welcome fellow Class of '85 author, Kat Henry Doran!

It is my great pleasure to introduce you to Kat Henry Doran who is a talented author and huge support to many writers at The Wild Rose Press, including myself. Funny, talented and a great advocate for The Wild Rose Press, Kat has written two books for the popular Class of '85 series as well as several other titles. Be sure to check out her impressive backlist at:

http://kathenry.com/

Over to you, Kat!

Hi, Rachel

Thanks for asking me to visit your blog today. I hope we can have some fun!

1) Who is your favorite author and why?

I have several favorites: Nora Roberts for her use of dry humor and the men she creates. I like Vince Flynn for the non-stop action of his thrillers and Michael Connolly for his legal-suspense novels featuring Mickey Haller. I like John R. Maxim and David Wiltse for their ability to create multi-layered characters, each of whom draws me into the story immediately. I also like Robert B. Parker's Jesse Stone.

2) When did you first consider yourself a writer?

When I realized the 27 page response I’d written to a get well card from an old friend was the beginnings of a book. That was 1987; the book was first released in 2006 from Wings Press and re-released in 2010 by The Wild Rose Press. The title is “Try Just Once More.”

3) Describe your writing space?

I write at a laptop, sitting on a loveseat in front of the TV set with ESPN or the Food Network blasting. Some will say they can’t tolerate distraction of any kind, but it works for me.

4) What are you reading now?

I don’t have much time to read these days so I make use of the time I have by listening to audio books. In the car I’m listening to Sandra Brown’s Chill Factor. In the sewing room [more about that later], I’m listening [again] to her story Envy. I love that book. Adore it. Idolize the hero Parker Evans.

5) How many books have your written?

I’ve written two full length novels and five novellas. Which is your favorite? They’re like my kids. I love them all the same, but each for different reasons.

6) What comes first, plot or characters?

Characters, absolutely, right down to the color and style of their underwear and their choices in food, music and the cars they drive.

7) Do you ever suffer from writer’s block?

Doesn’t everyone? When it hits I just take a nap till it goes away.

8) What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I design and make tote bags and purses for fun and profit. For anyone who’s interested, you can see a sample on http://www.katskarryalls.blogspot.com/

9) Tell us about your latest book?

Mad Dog and the Archangel is the second to last release in the Class of ’85 series out of The Wild Rose Press. It is about con man Rafael Archangeli who is given a second lease on life when he inherits a mega million dollar trust and meets Grace, Mad Dog, Dunavan, a former nun. It was a lot of fun to write.

10) What’s next for you?

I’m starting a series which features the Wild Things, a group of attorneys, both civil and criminal, who specialize in helping those who make too much money to qualify for a public defender but not enough for a Dream Team defense.

Blurb

Rafael Archangeli returns home to Summerville to bury an old friend, collect his inheritance, and then return to the only life he knows—conning wealthy women out of their money. In Rafe's world, money not only equals success, it goes a long way to obliterate the stigma of his past.

Grace Dunavan, former nun turned community activist, gave up worldly goods a long time ago with no regrets. But she's never known a man with the raw appeal of the Scourge of Summerville: Rafael Archangeli.

Their first meeting is like an errant strike of lightning, fierce and stunning in intensity, and takes both by surprise. Has Grace turned Rafe into a changed man? Or is he using his inheritance to pull off the biggest scam of his life?

Excerpt

Safety First.

A personal motto that served Grace Dunavan well for the past thirty-something years. She never picked up strange men. In fact, she rarely dated men, strange or otherwise. And wasn't she the first to preach the wisdom of obtaining a detailed history—family, medical and sexual before contemplating a walk on the wild side? With any man, including the brother of her best friend.

Especially one whose thick mop of jet colored hair, hooded black eyes and razor-sharp cheekbones, all of which held undeniable appeal for a good girl who always did what the nuns and her parents dictated. With a name like Archangeli he should be a protector, not a walking advertisement that proclaimed: I've Been There, Done That; Let Me Tell You All About It.

As he helped her into her coat, Grace heard Gaby murmur something about an attorney who was trying to track down Rafe. None of it made sense. What woman in her right mind could think straight when faced with a man who redefined potency?

It was a night of firsts for Grace: leaving a party with a man she'd never met before; admitting how and where she'd learned to drive; breaking the land speed record for contemplating her first one night stand.

Bio

Over the years I've had the honor to work at a number of occupations: operating room nurse, malpractice insurance investigator, forensic nurse examiner, victim advocate, wife and mother. Five years ago I became Nana for the first time and, believe me, it’s the best job ever!

Even if I sometimes wish they'd remain in the closet, the years I spent in the OR and labor floor, and later advocating for victims of sexual violence, contribute significantly to the voice of my writing. You don’t spend thirty years playing loyal serving maid and mind reader to egotistical surgeons, then twelve years haunting police stations, Emergency Rooms, and criminal courts without developing an internal alarm system for covert misogyny, rampant apathy, and overwhelming bigotry.

I retired my stethoscope and speculum a few years ago but continue to advocate quietly for marginalized populations through Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders.

I like hearing from readers. You can contact me through my website: http://kathenry.com/ or blog: http://wildwomanauthor.blogspot.com/

Thanks so much for being here, Kat - LOVE the sound of your new legal series!! Can't wait for that :)

Kat will be giving away a Funky Bag and a Toiletries Bag from Kats Kustom KarryAlls, filled with author swag to one random commenter on the tour as well as to the host with the most comments (excluding the host's and Kat's). US and Canada only, please.

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2011/11/virtual-book-tour-mad-dog-and-archangel.html

Over to you guys! Kat can't wait to hear from you :)