Please
welcome Babette James. Babette, please share a little bit about yourself.
I write contemporary and fantasy romance. Clear
As Day is my debut contemporary romance from The Wild Rose Press and I have to
say being able to hold my book in my hands for the first time and then see
Clear As Day receive the 4 1/2 star scorcher review from Romantic Times have
been truly thrilling moments in my journey as a writer. When not dreaming up
stories, I enjoy playing with new bread recipes and dabbling with paints. I am a teacher and I love encouraging new
readers and writers as they discover their growing abilities. My class cheers
when it’s time for their spelling test! I live in New Jersey with my
wonderfully patient husband and three extremely spoiled cats.
Why
do you write the stories you write?
I’ve
always loved writing and making up stories and I
always wanted to be an author. I remember carting home armloads of books from
the library, loving all the different stories and worlds and I wanted to write
the stories I imagined, too. I remember playing out complex tales with my dolls
and studiously writing out pieces of stories in spiral-bound notebooks and on
backs of school papers. I love exploring my story worlds and my characters’
lives. I write romance because that is
the kind of story I enjoy reading and I want that guarantee of a happy ending.
What
are your writing goals for this year?
My first goal is to complete and
submit the sequel to Clear As Day. Next is to finish the second sequel. Then, this
summer I want to set aside time to work on my fantasy series, which has been on
the back burner while I focused on my contemporary stories.
Do
you have any releases scheduled for this year?
My
debut release came out on April 4, 2012. Clear As Day is a spicy contemporary
romance about two friends with benefits facing the fears and uncertainties of
their changing relationship and is set against the background of the summer
heat and cool waters of Lake Mohave. Clear As Day began its life as a short
story I wrote back in college. It’s been a book of my heart in many ways, so
seeing this story bloom and come to life as a full-length published novel truly
has been a dream come true. I hope readers enjoy Nate and Kay’s journey as much
as I have.
What
do you like to read?
I love reading nail-biting tales with
a satisfying happily ever after. I read most genres of romance: fantasy,
contemporary, western, paranormal, historical. I also like mysteries and,
occasionally, women’s fiction if it’s upbeat. What catches me is a story rich
in description and emotional depth, and a full story world. Most importantly, no
matter the genre, I want that happy ending.
What
would you like to know from readers?
As a debut author, I’m curious to
know what helps you decide to try a new, unknown author.
Blurb:
What’s
a girl to do when her summer lover wants forever?
Haunted
by dark memories of her parents’ volatile marriage, artist Kay Browning keeps
her heart locked behind a free-spirit facade and contents herself with the
comfortable affair she has every summer with easygoing photographer Nate Quinn.
The
only trouble with her plan? This summer Nate’s come to Lake Mohave to claim the
lover he can’t let go. He’s done with the endless traveling and settling for
temporary homes and temporary loves. Kay’s always been more than just a
vacation fling, and now he must convince this woman, who sees love as a course
to certain heartbreak, to take that leap of faith and learn how safe love with
the right man can be.
Excerpt:
With a splash, she erased the
frustrating daydream. This wishful imagining fixed nothing. Her sheltered
little camp would still be empty. Should she give in, pack up the camp, and hit
the road north to Lake Mead instead? Just break her routine for once.
No, but it was definitely past time
to get her tush out of the water and do something constructive. This lonely
gnawing in her bones and brain was unacceptable. Kay pushed to her feet, facing
out to the scenic lake created out of a stretch of the Colorado River and the
rugged land beyond shimmering with heat.
Work, right, but it was too early in
the day for the hard afternoon light she needed for the Coyote Point painting.
She was too restless to read or fish and not in the mood to take the boat over
to the marina, chat with George, and buy ice.
She rolled her shoulders and
stretched, enjoying the hot air licking over her wet skin. As she wiggled her
feet in the sand and gravel-bottomed shallows, a flurry of minnows darted past
her ankles, and her silver toe ring glinted beneath the clear water. She
paused, caught by the possibilities in the sparkling sun on water and the
intricate, shifting reflections over gravel.
Yes! Exactly the distracting
challenge she needed. Shaking the water from her ears, she pivoted toward camp.
“Kay!” That male voice was not her
imagination.
“Oh, shit!” She twisted and dropped
into the water, sinking neck-deep.
Mother always said, among other
things, that a lady never goes skinny-dipping and must always wear a proper
hat. Kay was only half skinny-dipping, but she fervently wished she’d worn
something a bit more substantial than a baseball cap and the bottom half of the
quintessential teeny-weenie yellow polka-dot bikini.
Shit, oh, shit, oh, shit. She so
hated when Mother was right.
Okay, time to find out who’d just
gotten an eyeful. The guy had called her name, so she should know him. Oh boy,
if she’d flashed old George…
She wiped water from her face,
sucked in a breath against her pounding heart, and peeked around.
Nate.
She must be sun-dazed. Nate? With a
beard? Hair curling over his ears? No way.
Just because a familiar slouchy
fishing hat topped those unruly, sun-bleached blond curls and just because this
guy possessed the same deep-water tan and footloose taste in clothes as Nate
with his electric blue Hawaiian shirt, bright orange swim trunks, and beat-up
deck shoes didn’t mean—
“Hey, babe. Now that I’ve finally
caught your attention, how about a hug from my girl?” He opened his arms. “Am I
coming in after you or are you coming out?” Only Nate’s voice held that mellow
timbre like chocolate for her ears.
“Nate! What…” Giddy delight flushed
over Kay, clearing her shock. She dashed from the water and into strong arms, a
wonderful hug, and a better kiss that launched her mind into a blissed-out
whirl of oh, yes and why?
The oh, yes won out until the
need to breathe forced them apart.
Nate gave her a long look, his
usually easy gray eyes holding a new, simmering heat.
Wow. Whoa.
Links:
To learn more about Babette James and the
stories she creates go to:
Website: http://babettejames.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BabetteJames
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/BabetteJamesAuthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/babettejames
Youtube Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/E1ur-avq5YI
To purchase Clear As Day, go to:
The Wild Rose Press - eBook & Paperback: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=952
All Romance eBooks- eBook: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-clearasday-677696-149.html
7 comments:
Hi, Emma,thanks so much for letting me visit here today!
Welcome, Babette! Thanks for sharing a bit about yourself with us.
That's a good interview. Loved the excerpt and I checked out the book trailer on YT. Very good stuff!
Thanks so much, Kate! I had a lot of fun putting that trailer together.
Hi Babette! Nice meeting you here. Congrats on your debut book release! :) As a reader, I try a new author if blurb or excerpt sounds interesting and exciting and I feel I'd enjoy the story. Interacting on twitter, FB and blogs also help get the "word out" about a new book.
Hi, Phuong, thank you! Nice to meet you too!
Thanks for visiting Kate and Phuong! And, thanks for visiting Babette!
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