My name is Danielle. I write both Young Adult and New Adult fiction for Entangled Publishing and HarperCollins as D.R. Graham. People ask me all the time where I get my ideas for the novels I write. Those who know me assume because I am a child and family therapist that I must draw all my ideas from counseling sessions. I guess that’s partially true when it comes to character traits, but my stories don’t actually come to me as ideas based on other people’s lives. They start as intense feelings or random images that I find fascinating. ONE PERCENTER, which is the first book in the Noir et Bleu Motorcycle Club series, was inspired by a funeral of a high ranking member of an outlaw motorcycle club. I watched as the crowd exited the church into a parking lot full of police officers, and I was struck by the image of the little kids holding hands with their rough looking biker dads. It moved me to tell the story of what it is like to grow up loving people the rest of the world is terrified of. The first book I ever published, titled HIT THAT AND YOU’RE DEAD,…

I am so excited to introduce readers to my new series – The Montana Men. When I think of the rough, rugged land in Montana, I think of the even tougher guys who live and work there. After all, there’s something about a cowboy. Their strength of character. That rock solid guy who knows who he is and what he wants. Under all that grit lies a man who’s got down-home charm and manners any mama would approve of. Their loyalty runs bone-deep, as deep as their love for home and family. Cowboys are wild at heart. They work hard and play harder, that wild streak taking them from the ranch to the rodeo circuit where there’s no fear or hesitation to get on a giant bull or ride a bucking bronco around an arena, chasing the thrill of the ride. Let’s not forget how damn good they look in those tight jeans. Or even better, sitting atop a horse. All it takes is one cocky half grin and a sexy as hell narrowed gaze from under their cowboy hat and any woman would melt in their strong arms. Oh yeah! With such an iconic image and the beautiful Montana…

I am working with Harlequin to do something rather innovative for my many loyal readers. I got a lot of emails begging me to right a novella epilogue for NEVER SURRENDER (Bay and Gabe, the main characters). I did that, but I also wanted to take a secondary from that book, Mike Tarik, and add him to this 11,000 word novella. I married the two of them into it so that the novella was not only an epilogue regarding “what happened next to Bay and Gabe,” but also became a bridge to Mike’s book, TAKING FIRE. There are actually THREE books involved, with ZONE OF FIRE (February 1, 2015) coming out first to set up Mike’s book. Then, on February 25th, TAKING FIRE comes out and is Mike and Khatereh’s story. It is followed on March 1st by ON FIRE, Ebook only. It is what I term a “director’s cut” to their story. Unfortunately, in paperbacks, a 100,000 words is the max amount one can write about a story. I over ran that mark by roughly 40,000 words! And I did not want to delete it and forget it. My editor, Tara Gavin, agreed and so did Harlequin. This is…

They say it’s the small things, and I totally agree. Little gestures to profess something larger is enough to bring tears to my eyes. My favorite gesture was when a very nice man carried me over a muddy puddle so I wouldn’t ruin my shoes. I don’t think I can possibly forget something that sweet (and I really love those shoes)! As romance readers, we expect those gestures from our heroes. He must show the heroine in a subtle—or not-so-subtle—way that she is important to him. Her happiness is his happiness. Her pleasure is his pleasure. Even if he gets him nowhere with her, it’s unconditional. In LEFT TO FOREVER, the hero Jacob makes a series of gestures, but one of them was catalytic to the heroine’s self-progression. Isn’t that what’s wonderful about little things and grand gestures? They breathe life intp us—tiny puffs and large ones. They change us. Make us see in different light. So now, I want to share with you two of my favorite grand gestures: 1 – On Frasier when Niles finally tells Mel in front of their very snobby and judgmental social circle that he loves Daphne. To me that was so pivotal for…