I began at my local military recruiting center when researching Navy SEALs for my novel BRIDGING TWO HEARTS. I picked up a red phone at the locked door and announced my name and reason for visiting (I obviously was not an enlistment candidate). A camera swiveled in my direction and the door buzzed to let me in. Once inside I explained to a female Navy chief that as a “retired” Navy wife, I had spent twenty years without a need to know things I didn’t need to know, therefore, I didn’t have a problem with not needing to know important details about SEAL operations. She smiled. As did every military person I explained this to over the next months. Unfortunately, she could not give me any SEAL details. Instead, she picked up a hot pink post-it note and wrote a name and a phone number. I should call “Steve” for information. When “Steve” answered the phone, I heard the click of pool balls in the background along with what sounded like a sip from a glass. I explained who I was–that I was writing a story about Navy SEALs and I just needed background information about the domestic side of SEAL life. I’ve read enough…

In the book JEAN SASSON: A NEW ORIENTALIST, Indian academic Vijay Mehta refers to you as the “voice of the Middle East women”. What does it mean to you to be recognized as an advocate for our sisters in the Middle East? JEAN:  I am proud to be acknowledged as a voice of the Middle East women.  I feel it is one of the two greatest achievements of my life; the other being responsible for the freedom of the many confined and mistreated animals I have rescued. I have been emotionally, and even physically, involved in assisting girls and women in need for more than 30 years.  For me, one of the most depressing aspects of this entire journey has been to meet girls and women who had nowhere to turn, and to see the utter misery reflected in their sad eyes.  So many told me that they felt helpless and hopeless that anyone would, or could, help them.  There is no more unbearable feeling than to know a vulnerable human being is being beaten, or raped, and to struggle unsuccessfully against the culture that is keeping females in all ages in such tragic situations. So, the fact that the…

SOUL PAINTER began with a single vision: a woman, alone in the mist. The color grey filled my senses, and I put pen to paper to write that first scene. I had no idea where she lived, what she was like, or what the main conflict in the novel would be. What I did know was that there was a woman in the foggy recesses of my imagination, and she wanted out. The first few pages rested for a couple of months while the rest of the story took shape in my mind. I felt I needed to plan, so I feasted on a constant diet of “what-if.” Eventually, the thinking time paid off. The other characters took shape: a dedicated priest who was still a man, women trapped by life’s unexpected turns, and the embodiment of evil. But the woman in the fog remained a mystery. My main character was just beyond my grasp. Until I picked up the pen again. That’s when I realized Miriam was not who she seemed. I knew she was a woman hiding. I knew she was alone. I knew she was brave in the face of extreme danger but trembled when strangers stood…

Rhonda Helms and I have challenged each other to a swoon off, pitting the heroes of our September release New Adult books against each other. There will be three events (Who is sexier?, Who has the best pick up/first conversation with the heroine?, and Who does the best grovel?). We will write about our heroes and post snippets from our books. Then there will be voting! Stop by the three blogs to vote and post a comment to participate in our giveaway. Who has the best pickup line/ first conversation? PHIN (From HER BEST SHOT) When Layla, my heroine, first meets Phin, it’s in a bar while he is playing pool. She watched him play a few games and take money from his opponents. She’s intrigued by him, and yes, attracted to him, but she’s caught a little off guard when he approaches her because she thought no one noticed her come into the bar. He pointed his pool cue at her. “Are you going to sit there staring all night, or are you going to play?” “Me? I’m not stupid enough to play pool with a hustler. My day’s been crappy enough. I don’t need to lose anything else.”…