Welcome Astrea Press author, Elaine Cantrell!

Hi, Elaine! Welcome back to my blog. I am so happy to have the chance to catch up with you and be a part of your ongoing tour. Love you new cover, by the way. Okay, let's get started...

1)   Did you set any goals for 2012?  Yes, I did. I knew that I was having three early spring releases so most of my attention focused on them. I envisioned a press release for each one followed by release parties, guest interviews, reviews, and promotion at my blog.

Since I hate for books I love to end, I decided to do a feature I call Beyond the Book at my blog. I do it every Tuesday. Beyond the Book gives readers a glimpse into my characters’ lives after the book ends. My characters have shared recipes, decorating tips, clothes, and updated readers on their news. During May and June, I shared pictures from each heroine’s wedding. I absolutely drooled over the beautiful dresses and cakes. I can’t forget my faithful compatriot Rascal either. Rascal is my dog. He’s interested in writing and sometimes puts in an appearance at the blog.

2)   What is the best part of the writing process for you?  I love starting a new book because I’m filled with excitement and energy and eager to share my new characters with everyone I know. The very best part, though, is getting so involved in my characters’ world that they feel like real people to me. Then, they start to feel like friends. I have been known to be a bit grouchy when the real world intruded on my writing time.

3)   The worst part? The worst part is when the book ends. I’ve spent months with the characters, and now they’re gone. It gives me an empty feeling inside. I know one author who said that she writes a letter to her characters and tells them goodbye. Hating to say goodbye is the main reason for my Tuesday Beyond the Book feature. That way, if I get lonesome for them, I just write them in on my Tuesday blog.

4)   What is the book you wish you’d written? Twilight. I’m a teacher so I know that lots of kids don’t like to read. In school and in life I think this is a definite handicap. I’d like to have written Twilight because it would please me to think that just maybe my book taught young people that reading can be fun.

5)   Favourite author/s & book/s? That’s like asking a mother which is her favorite child. I’ll just mention one. I love Elizabeth Peters who also writes as Barbara Michaels. Her Amelia Peabody series is one of my favorites. It has mystery, humor, romance, and worthy villains all mixed delightfully together.

6)   Tell us about your latest release?  Never Trust a Pretty Wolf is a romantic suspense novel. I’ve always liked romantic suspense so a lot of my other works have an element of suspense in them. This book was inspired by my son who geocaches with his family. Geocaching is a game played all across the country. Someone hides a cache and then posts the coordinates to the cache online. Those who like geocaching use a GPS to go and find the hidden treasure. Most of the time the treasure isn’t valuable, maybe just a log book that you write in and then rebury. If you do take something, you leave something in return so others can also find a treasure.

I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if you were geocaching in a high dollar charity game with a person you didn’t know, and the two of you found a dead body, after which you were running for your life from a notorious psychopath.  That’s basically what Pretty Wolf is all about. Of course, since it’s a romance, we know that at some point my hero and heroine are going to fall in love with each other.  And then the secrets start coming out.

7)   Tease us with a blurb/short except.

Liesel Wolf has a secret, a dangerous secret she’ll go to any lengths to conceal.  When she’s paired in a charity game with sexy marshal Andy Bryce, a man with secrets of his own, her carefully constructed world comes crashing down, and Liesel’s on a collision course with her past.

8)   What is your favourite attribute of the hero and heroine? What I like about Liesel my heroine is her courage. Liesel is in an extremely dangerous situation, but instead of seeing herself as a victim, she takes matters into her own hands and tries to start a new life. She’s probably braver than I am.

My hero, Andy is admirable because even though a US Marshal deals with hardened criminals and sees some ugly things, he still has a sensitive heart. He hasn’t let his work interfere with his essential goodness and humanity.

9)   What’s next? Two things. First, a sequel to Return Engagement which is a Whiskey Creek release. The sequel is titled Blue 52, and it’s already written. All I have to do is a little editing. This is one of my all-time favorites, so I’m hoping everyone will like it as much as I do.

The second thing is to finish my romantic comedy. I don’t think I’m really a funny person, but some people disagree with that, so I’ve decided to see if they’re right.

10)                  Tell me where you write? I have a tiny office that I adore. It has everything I need to make me happy. My computer desk isn’t especially pretty, but it is well designed with lots of storage space. Best of all, I have a small bed in there. If I suddenly need a nap, all I have to do is get out of my desk chair and fall onto the bed. My son covets that bed, but so far I haven’t given it to him even though it would give me a lot more space in the office. I recently bought a new comforter for it. It’s red and white and like nothing I ever had before. My home is done is green, coral, and yellow, so the red and white looks pretty nice.

11)                  Where would you like your career to be in 5 years? Uh, New York Times bestseller list?  That would be nice, but I’ll be contented as long as my current readers are happy, and I’m making new friends as I write.

12)                  Where can we find you?

Web site:  http://www.elainecantrell.com

Blog: http://www.elainepcantrell.blogspot.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/elainepcantrell

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/elainecantrell

Thanks so much for being a part of my blog tour. Your questions were thoughtful and insightful.

NEVER TRUST A PRETTY WOLF

By

Elaine Cantrell

BLURB:  

Liesel Wolf has a secret, a dangerous secret she’ll go to any lengths to conceal. When she’s paired in a charity game with sexy marshal Andy Bryce, a man with secrets of his own, her carefully constructed world comes crashing down, and Liesel’s on a collision course with her past.

  

EXCERPT: 

Andy’s hand shot out. “Give me that gun,” he commanded.

“No.”

He took it from her with ease. “I don’t know why you have this,” he whispered, “but if we get out of here alive you have some explaining to do. Now, keep moving but stay in control. Remember, no headlong plunges into the woods.”

Forty‑five minutes later, they exited the woods near the bridge that crossed the little creek. Liesel fearfully scanned the inviting, family‑centered area. “I don’t see anyone.”

“Two o’clock. Men in khaki.” Andy came to a halt and jerked her against him. “Kiss me like you mean it.”

Liesel didn’t mind if she did. Hopefully the khaki men would never imagine that two lovers out for a stroll had only moments before been running for their very lives. She prayed the men didn’t get too good a look at them. Throwing her arms around him, she pressed her body against his.

 She wouldn’t have admitted to it for anything, but in spite of the danger, she felt a thrill from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet. Nobody could kiss like Andy Bryce!

 Andy took her hand, and they strolled casually across the bridge as if they’d been on a leisurely little walk. He kissed her again before they got into the Mustang. The minute they got in, he put the car in gear and slowly made his way out of the park. “Now, Liesel,” he said. “Why don’t you tell me why those men are trying to kill you?”

  

AUTHOR INFORMATION:

Elaine Cantrell was born and raised in South Carolina.  She holds a Master’s Degree in Personnel Services from Clemson University and is a member of Alpha Delta Kappa, an international honorary sorority for women educators.  She is also a member of Romance Writer’s of America and EPIC authors.  Her first novel, A New Leaf, was the 2003 winner of the Timeless Love Contest and was published in 2004 by Oak Tree Books.  At present she teaches high school social studies.

LINKS:

website:  http://www.elainecantrell.com

blog:  http://www.elainepcantrell.blogspot.com

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/elainepcantrell

Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/elainecantrell

Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/elainecantrell

Buy links:  http://www.http://www.astraeapress.com/#ecwid:category=662245&mode=product&product=11343720

http://www.amazon.com/Never-Trust-Pretty-Wolf-ebook/dp/B0088346GK/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339027299&sr=1-1

Elaine will be giving away a $25 Amazon gift certificate to one randomly drawn commenter.  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/2012/06/virtual-book-tour-never-trust-pretty.html. 

 

 Over to you, guys! Comments??