Nicole Thorne talks about her novel Chasing Butterflies

Welcome to debut author Nicole Thorne!

I was very lucky to get to read Chasing Butterflies and add my own review:

When tragedy strikes her mother, Helen, Hope runs away from the beautiful Cornish town of Port Merdow to build her own life. She becomes a respected architect with a loving husband until problems in her life drive her back home. In order to move on with her life, she needs to come face to face with her past to find peace.

Thorne has written an intriguing novel that I found hard to put down. The only thing that could have made it better was a good edit but my heart went out to Hope and all she endured.

Diane

Nicole Thorne lives on the North-West of England with her husband Sean and her children. She is a former teacher who now owns and runs a tea room.

Nic has always had a passion for developing characters and stories. In her younger days she wrote plays for the other children in the street to perform. In junior school she won a competition with a play she wrote. In high school she brought her English teacher to tears with a story about bullying.

Nic's writing focuses on the emotions of the situations. Her debut novel Chasing Butterflies is a very emotional journey with twists, turns and ups and downs along the way.

Nic is currently working on a prequel to "Chasing Butterflies" called "The China Doll".

Website:  https://nicolethorneauthor.wixsite.com/website

Tell us about your life outside of writing.

Outside of writing I have quite a busy life. I have four children, but two of them are grown up so don't need much from me. I own and run a tea room. A few years ago I decided that the pressures of teaching were too much and decided to start my own business. It's hard work, but incredibly rewarding. I have some fantastic customers and have built a really good reputation in the town. To relax I love to sit down to a delicious home cooked meal and a glass or two of wine while me and my other half put the world to rights. I also really love my family time. Getting all the kids around to play a board game or watch a film is great. Other than that I love to soak in the bath with a good book.

Do you have a work in progress?

I'm currently working on a prequel to "Chasing Butterflies" called "The China Doll". Hopefully readers will gain more empathy for the character Helen who they met in Chasing Butterflies.

What was the most difficult section/piece you ever wrote? What made it difficult?

The most difficult part was writing about the miscarriage. I suffered multiple miscarriages before I conceived my youngest daughter so the emotions conveyed in that part of the book were very real. I had all of these people around me expecting me to pick myself up and brush myself off as though nothing had happened and I just couldn't do that. I wrote about the miscarriage shortly after I suffered my first loss five years ago. I left it for quite some time before revisiting the story. I altered the events and the Character Hope's circumstances were very different to mine. I decided to explore the reasons a person who craved a family of her own might postpone pregnancy until she was almost forty. The story that unfolded started with the miscarriage as a catalist, but ultimately that is not what the story is about. I thought about the events that might have happened in her life to damage her trust in people, especially men. Hope is a very damaged and fragile character, but she also displays a great deal of strength and determination.

What sort of research do you do for your work? - Most of the research was just via google. The book is very character based so it depended mainly on my own imagination. I of course drew on my own experiences too. For my latest novel I have been researching fishing techniques and art courses.

Which books and authors do you read for pleasure? Is there an author that inspires you?

I tend not to read one particular author these days. Mostly I'll look for books by indie authors or just pick something up that I like the look of. I used to be obsessed with Steven King and Dean Koontz, although I had to sleep with the bedroom light on when I had read their books.

Was there a person who encouraged you to write?

I've always had a desire to write. I don't think it came from anyone else. The stories have always been there developing in my mind. At school I used to get told off for daydreaming. I had a few English teachers who praised my writing, I found that encouraging.

CHASING BUTTERFLIES

    Chasing Butterflies is the story of Hope.

It's the story of a girl who is damaged by life. A story about finding love against all odds. It's a story of hidden truths and painful lies.

The main character Hope is on the cusp of her fortieth birthday. She has just about got her life together. She is married to Ben who she absolutely adores, she has an amazing job as an architect.

Everything changes following a devastating twist of fate. Hope's life starts to spiral out of control, she is troubled by dreams that remind her of the past she left behind.

Hope returns to the idyllic Cornish village of her childhood to find the answers she needs to find peace.

Will she find the truth is more painful than the lie?

Amazon Link

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chasing-Butterflies-Nicole-Thorne-ebook/dp/B08923F7ZH/ref=sr_1_1?crid=ASEX69TB6IOX&dchild=1&keywords=chasing+butterflies&qid=1594589838&sprefix=chasing+butter%2Caps%2C164&sr=8-1

Round Robin Blog Fest September 2020

Happy Fall to you all,

Summer in Southern Ontario was hot and sunny with breaks of cold and rainy. For now though, we've settled into cooler fall weather and waiting for the leaves to change color and collapse in exhaustion from this crazy year we've had so far!

September's question for all the Round Robin Blog Fest authors is:  Most novels have an easily understood point to make to the reader, do your stories ever have more subtle or intuitive themes?

My first thought went straight to this oldie but goodie meme that we've all heard before:

Sometimes a blue curtain is just a blue curtain.

A brown dog is just a brown dog.

Most of the time, I write my novels without a planned message or underlying theme.

BUT most of the time there actually is an underlying message in novels whether they are planned or sometimes subconscious to the writer then they create the first draft. These remind people to hold their families close, that friends are important, or to take care of themselves.  Even a lot of sci-fi and fantasy novels carry messages about the establishment and justice or the hazards with having fire-breathing dragons.

Women who are down but not out and find their way out of bad situations. That seems to be my ongoing theme for most of my series. Like Gilda in my Gilda Wright Mysteries, they may face dark days but they will always come out fighting, or at least crime solving. While I don't focus on things like blue curtains, I show the ways the women rebuild and empower themselves whether it be through martial arts, running a business, or in Lucy Stephen's case in The Mystery Lady, becoming a mystery writer.

Gilda Wright started off as a "weak" person who becomes stronger with each mystery and each karate class she kicks her way through. Even when she has her down moments, she fights back and never gives up. Her whole reason for getting involved with karate was to empower herself when her boyfriend (Jason Thayer) cheated on her. Now that she's more confident and a stronger person, he's been trying to win her back while she is also getting to know Kane Garrick and dealing with secrets her boyfriend Mick Williams is hiding.

Laken Miller, in All that Sparkles, book one of my Glitter Bay series, is a former model who became ill and had to start her life over. Like Gilda, she seeks to rebuild her life from the ground up after a nasty divorce and a bout with cancer. She is lucky to have fame and money to use to her advantage, but many things she's had to deal with don't require money. Like dealing with her free-spirited sister.

Audra Clemmings in Drop Dead Cowboy has already raised her kids, built her business, but things keep popping up to knock her back down.

So where did this drive to write about resilient women come from? I was raised by them!

My mom rebuilt her life after separation from my dad.

My amazing grandma who passed Sept 1, 2020, lost her husband over 30 years ago and took driver's training with me in her late 50s! 

With such great role models, what else would I write about?

My Grandma's first car!

Off we go to find out what themes other authors use in their novels....

Skye Taylor 

Connie Vines 
Judith Copek 
Diane Bator 
Fiona McGier 
Dr. Bob Rich 
Anne Stenhouse  
Victoria Chatham 
Helena Fairfax 
Rhobin L Courtright 

Debra Goldstein reveals her Sarah Blair Mystery series

 

Mysteries with recipes and cuddly animals? Welcome to Debra Goldstein!!

Judge Debra H. Goldstein authors Kensington’s Sarah Blair mystery series including recently published Three Treats Too Many, 2020 Silver Falchion finalist Two Bites Too Many, and January 2019 Woman’s World Book of the Week One Taste Too Many. Debra also wrote Should Have Played Poker and 2012 IPPY Award winning Maze in Blue. Her short stories have been chosen as Agatha, Anthony, and Derringer finalists. Find out more about Debra at:

Website – www.DebraHGoldstein.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/DebraHGoldsteinAuthor/      

Twitter - @DebraHGoldstein

Instagram – debra.h.goldstein

Bookbub – https://www.bookbub.com/profile/debra-h-goldstein

What would you say are your strengths as an author?  

My biggest strength as an author is and has been my passion to succeed as a writer. That motivation is what has enabled me to willingly learn from other authors, readers, books, and classes how to better my writing. It also forced me to translate my ideas into written words that eventually were enough for a short story or a novel.

How often do you write, and do you write using a strict routine?  

I wish I could say that I write daily or have an established routine, but I don’t. When I was still on the bench, I was more disciplined – writing between midnight and four a.m., as well as on weekends, but now, days blend into each other and I only write when the muse hits me or I have a deadline.

Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?  

Five years from now, I hope I am a better and more disciplined writer who gives back in the same manner people have extended themselves to help me. In terms of my writing, I would love it if my Sarah Blair series is still going, my short stories are continuing to be accepted, and I have written a standalone that is well-received.

 If you could offer once piece of advice to a novice writer, what would it be?

Assuming the novice writer is writing rather than talking about it, my advice is “Be a sponge.” Take classes, attend lectures, read books on writing, network, learn from writers who are higher in the food chain, and read and dissect well-written and poorly written books in the genre you are writing in.

What would you consider to be the best compliment a reader could give your book?

The best compliment is that my book was fun and made the reader, for a little while, forget about the real world. 

What are you working on now? 

Because Three Treats Too Many, the third book in Kensington’s Sarah Blair series, was released on August 25, I’m busy juggling promoting it with writing the fifth Sarah Blair mystery. I recently turned in the fourth book. It will be published in June 2021.

THREE TREATS TOO MANY - published August 25, 2020

When a romantic rival opens a competing restaurant in small-town Wheaton, Alabama, Sarah Blair discovers murder is the specialty of the house . . . 
 
For someone whose greatest culinary skill is ordering takeout, Sarah never expected to be co-owner of a restaurant. Even her Siamese cat, RahRah, seems to be looking at her differently. But while Sarah and her twin sister, Chef Emily, are tangled up in red tape waiting for the building inspector to get around to them, an attention-stealing new establishment—run by none other than Sarah's late ex-husband's mistress, Jane—is having its grand opening across the street. 
 
Jane's new sous chef, Riley Miller, is the talk of Wheaton with her delicious vegan specialties. When Riley is found dead outside the restaurant with Sarah's friend, Jacob, kneeling over her, the former line cook—whose infatuation with Riley was no secret—becomes the prime suspect. Now Sarah must turn up the heat on the real culprit, who has no reservations about committing cold-blooded murder . . . Includes quick and easy recipes!

TWO BITES TOO MANY - 2020 Silver Falchion Finalist - published October 2019

Things are finally looking up for Sarah Blair following her unsavory divorce. Settled into a cozy carriage house with her sassy Siamese cat, RahRah, she has somehow managed to hang on to her law firm receptionist job and – if befriending flea-bitten strays at the local animal shelter counts – lead a thriving social life. For once, Sarah almost has it together more than her enterprising twin, Emily, a professional chef whose efforts to open a gourmet restaurant have hit a real dead end…

When the president of the town bank and city council is murdered after icing Emily’s business plans, all eyes are on the one person who left the scene with blood on her hands – the twins’ sharp-tongued mother, Maybelle. Determined to get her mom off the hook ASAP, Sarah must collect the ingredients of a deadly crime to bring the true culprit to justice. But as neighbors turn against her family, can she pare down the suspects before another victim lands on the chopping block.

ONE TASTE TOO MANY - published January 2019

For culinary challenged Sarah Blair, there’s only one thing scarier than cooking from scratch—murder!

Married at eighteen, divorced at twenty‑eight, Sarah Blair knew starting over would be messy, but things fall apart completely when her ex drops dead, seemingly poisoned by her twin sister’s award-winning rhubarb crisp. Now, with RahRah, her Siamese cat, wanted by the woman who broke up her marriage and her sister wanted by the police for murder, Sarah needs to figure out the right recipe to crack the case before time runs out. Unfortunately, for a gal whose idea of good china is floral paper plates, catching the real killer and living to tell about it could mean facing a fate worse than death—being in the kitchen!    

 [Recipes in One Taste Too Many include Jell-O in a Can.]

Buy Links:

Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Three-Treats-Sarah-Blair-Mystery/dp/1496719492

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/three-treats-too-many-debra-h-goldstein/1135275342?ean=9781496719492

Ann Simas tell us about The Wrong Wicca and many more...

Welcome to novelist Ann Simas, author of many mysteries!

Ann Simas lives in Oregon, but she is a Colorado girl at heart, having grown up in the Rocky Mountains. She has been an avid reader since childhood and penned her first fiction “book” in high school. She particularly likes to write mystery-thriller-suspense with a love story and paranormal or supernatural elements.

An award-winning watercolorist and a budding photographer, Ann enjoys needlework and gardening in her spare time. She is her family's "genealogist" and has been blessed with the opportunity to conduct first-hand research in Italy for both her writing and her family tree. The genealogy research from decade's old documents in Italian, she says, has been a supreme but gratifying challenge.

Ann is a member of International Thriller Writers, Northwest Independent Writers Association, Sisters in Crime, and Italian American Writers Association.

- - - - - - - -

Social Media Links

Author Website  https://annsimas.com

Facebook:           https://www.facebook.com/Ann-Simas-Author-410011319127684/

BookBub:            https://www.bookbub.com/authors/ann-simas

GoodReads:        https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7039844.Ann_Simas

Amazon:             https://amazon.com/author/annsimas

     What would you say are your strengths as an author?

     I’m fortunate that I have determination, perseverance, and an innate ability to write. I also have an inquisitive mind, a good imagination, and I enjoy doing research. My books have lots of twists and turns, so for me, these attributes are a winning combination.

     How often do you write, and do you write using a strict routine?

     I write every day, seven days a week. I used to write 10-plus hours a day, but in December 2018, my husband and I were in a car crash that resulted in a torn tendon at my right rotator cuff. The injury has curtailed my 10-hour writing days, so now, I usually only write four-to-five hours a day.

     I wouldn’t say my routine is strict. Some days, I get no writing done at all. Life and family intervene, and for me, family comes first. I’m good with that, as long as I meet my self-imposed release deadlines, which are generally May, July, October, and November, and my promos get done.

     Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?

     Five years from now, at my current rate of writing, I will have reached my goal of writing 50 books. It’s entirely possible I will retire from writing at that point. However, since I can’t see into the future, I may feel differently by then. I may want to forge on to 75 books. (I’m smiling.)

     If you could offer one piece of advice to a novice writer, what would it be?

     When I decided to write my first book, I bought a writing-romance how-to, because that’s what I was reading at the time. I devoured that book from beginning to end, then started writing in my spare time. Over the years, I attended conferences and writing workshops, hoping to learn something new. It was beat into my head that it was imperative to write an outline, character sketches, and a synopsis. That stalled me, and it stressed me out like crazy, but I felt compelled to do what I’d been taught.

     I sold a novella to Harlequin, and I wrote four books, three of which were RWA Golden Heart Finalists, but still, they languished under the weight of rejection letters that basically said “too much mystery, not enough romance.” Eventually, it hit me that I should write a mystery, so I did. I finished Dressed to Die, but it wasn’t polished. One day in 2012, I came to the realization that the outline-sketches-synopsis method didn’t work for me. Keeping that in mind, I looked at Dressed with new eyes and it came together perfectly. Thirty-one books later, I’m happy with the path I chose, which included switching to the route of indie author, rather than traditional publishing again.

 
My advice to novice authors is this: Not everyone is cut out to follow the established writing path of plotting the whole book ahead of time. Some people are born to be pantsters, or writers who plot as they go. If you’re not sure which you are, try it both ways and see what works for you. Another thing, don’t be afraid to approach experts when you research. No matter how famous they may be, you have a 50/50 chance they’ll speak to you. (Be sure to thank them in your Author Note.) Also, give serious consideration to whether or not you want to publish with a traditional publisher or go the indie route. Either way, you have your work cut out for you, which brings me to my last word of advice. Don’t go into writing thinking you’re going to hit the best-seller lists and make a fortune. That happens infrequently. However, if it does happen to you, congratulations!

     What would you consider to be the best compliment a reader could give your book?

     Let me cite a couple of examples of what readers have said that warmed my heart and made me chuckle. One comes from a review written about Here and Gone (Fossil, Colorado Books #1). She said, “Loved Here and Gone, couldn’t hardly put it down, but my animals and husband needed to eat.” Another came to me via email about Taken to Die (Grace Gabbiano Mysteries, book 5): “I swear, you had me believing in extraterrestrials in Taken to Die.”

     When someone says they couldn’t put down one of my books, or that I drew them thoroughly into the story, I take it as high praise, indeed.

     What are you working on now?

     My current work-in-progress is The Wrong Wicca (Andi Comstock Supernatural Mysteries, Book 5). This series was inspired by a real-life event I had on my last job. I smelled smoke in the building, but no one else did. A year or so after I left that job, it came to me how I could use that experience in a book and the Andi series was born. Suffice it to say, that building was on the opposite corner from a crematorium.

     Wicca deviates from Andi talking to the cremated dead (Smokies) when a murdered woman asks for help to find her body. Andi’s cohorts in crime-fighting are her new husband, Jack Harmon, a homicide detective, and Father Riley O’Shaughnessy, the priest at the Catholic Church down the street from where Andi works. In Wicca, there’s also a magic trunk that contains a huge clue to Cassie’s killer, if only Andi can figure it out.

GRACE GABBIANO MYSTERIES

PRAYING TO DIE (Grace Gabbiano Mystery, Book 6)(New Release)

Father Sidney has gone off to find himself, even though he knows someone is stealing valuable items from St. Anthony Church. Chief Aidan Cruz decides it’s time for Grace to go undercover as a nun to find the thief. It doesn’t take “Sister Agatha” long to discover that Father Sidney’s search didn’t go well.

mybook.to/Praying-to-Die

Other Book in the Series

Dressed to Die, Book 1
Sliced to Die, Book 2
Buried to Die, Book 3
Quilted to Die, Book 4
Taken to Die, Book 5

FOSSIL. COLORADO BOOKS

HERE AND GONE (Book 1) A thriller…and a love story—both will leave you breathless!

Hannah Clarke, a wife and mom one day, is a widow without a child the next. Two years later, living as H.L. Mason in Fossil, Colorado, her safe new world explodes with a revelation so shocking and horrifying she can hardly grasp it. By chance, she meets Sheriff Noah Ward, and though she’s leery of cops after being accused of killing her family, she needs help. Noah, a former Navy SEAL, agrees to do what he can, but they both soon discover that the case is far more insidious than parental abduction.

 mybook.to/HERE-GONE

DISAPPEARING ACT (Book 2)(New Release) Even when you run, love can find you.

Georgina Flannery has a new name, a new occupation, and trust issues. She’s lived in six states in eight years, and she has no friends. Fossil, Colorado is her next destination, but she takes a wrong turn and ends up in a creek, only to be rescued by Brant Ward. Georgie prefers to keep men at a distance, but circumstances have taken that away from her and she’s forced to reveal her past to Brant. The more untangled her family dynamics become, the more twisted they get. When the ultimate secret is revealed, it’s incomprehensible. It also raises the question, will Georgie and Brant survive the evil pursuing them?

 mybook.to/DisappearingAct

Other Book in the Series

Run or Don’t (Book 3, coming May 2021)

ANDI COMSTOCK SUPERNATURAL MYSTERIES

THE WRONG WICCA (Book 5)(Release date, October 31, 2020; pre-order on Amazon)

Andi Comstock has grown used to talking to the cremated dead (Smokies), so it comes as a surprise when a non-Smokie speaks to her about finding her murdered body. Andi has no idea what awaits her once Cassie’s body is found. First, there’s the magic trunk. Then, there’s Cassie’s golden retriever, Trigger. The dog she can deal with, but what’s inside the magic trunk is another story. Are its magical contents really significant to Cassie’s death? Will they lead to Cassie’s killer…or will the killer find Andi before she finds him?

 mybook.to/TheWrongWicca

Other Book in the Series

Holy Smoke (Book 1)

Penitence (Book 2)

Angel Babies (Book 3)

Hellfire (Book 4)