Readers who enjoyed my first Writer’s Apprentice mystery, A DARK AND STORMY MURDER, don’t have to wait much longer for the sequel. DEATH IN DARK BLUE debuts on May 2. Since I don’t want to delve too deeply into the storyline and risk spoilers, I thought I’d talk a little more about Blue Lake, the fictional town where all the mystery happens. A Dark and Stormy Murder #1 Amazon.com BN.com iTunes/iBooks Kobo Google Play Death in Dark Blue #2 Amazon.com BN.com iTunes/iBooks Kobo Google Play Blue Lake is an amalgam of any number of Midwestern small towns I’ve visited, and even Bick’s Hardware has shades of other hardware stores I’ve seen over fifty years. One in particular stands out. It was a wonderful old store in Valparaiso, Indiana—my college town!—and I happened to wander into this place when I was twenty and searching, just before Christmas break, for family Christmas gifts. I had chosen my brother Christopher’s name in the family grab bag, and I wanted to buy him a saw and a flannel shirt (both on his list). So I walked the mile from campus to Valpo’s downtown strip, and I stumbled across an amazing place called Wark’s Hardware….

The things you learn while researching a book can be very interesting in and of themselves. Everyone of a certain age remembers the Sears catalog as a place to order clothing, toys, and home goods, but did you know that an entire house could be ordered from Sears in the early twentieth century? A mail order home, also known as a “kit house”, was a parcel of goods containing precut wood, windows, shingles, and all the other items needed to build a house. The parcel was usually shipped to the desired location by rail. The would-be homeowner provided the labor and, often, the concrete and bricks needed to construct a foundation. The pieces were often labeled to assist in assembly, just like a model kit. During the mid-1920s, land lots in Florida sold like crazy. The West Coast Development Company was selling undeveloped parcels in Homosassa, the setting of our book. The St. Petersburg papers were filled with real estate ads. Harry Prettyman was advertising Gold Rushes in Oldsmar, burying gold pieces in vacant lots as a promotional gimmick. Empty lots needed houses on them. Most of them were constructed by traditional builders, but others were built from kits. Sears…

After many rejections, from publishers, I decided to write the book I wanted and not the book I thought publishers wanted. Keeping in mind this was just before the “explosion” of e-books and self publishing. It was a dangerous decision because I had no idea what I was going to do with the book once I’d finished it. Against good advice from a prolific, multi-published author in the romance writing industry, I went ahead and created Alex Jackson, a super star who can sing and tap-dance. My heroine, in KISSES UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT, had a best friend and I just loved writing the book. In the final wedding scene, I couldn’t let the BFF go. She had to have her own story so I wrote, WANTING MR RIGHT. I now had two books I loved, with two BFFs. Perfect. But then one day when coming home from my corporate job I thought about a character in the first book and wondered what happened to her. Sandwiched between commuters, I sketched my ideas for a third book, which became TOGETHER AT LAST. I now had three books and was very happy with them. And then it was suggested I write a…

Have you ever been to Blessings, Georgia? You should take a trip there someday. There aren’t any tourist destinations, but there is a feeling within that sleepy Southern town unlike any place I’ve ever been. Every time I begin a new story, I get to revisit the residents, some of whom are aggravating, and some who will melt your heart upon introduction. But they all have one thing in common. When someone is in need, they come together without judgment, giving of themselves and their time, sharing joy and grief. I wish I lived there. Every time I finish a story, I feel lost…like I moved away from my own special Eden. Everyone should live in a place like this at least once in their lives, if for no other reason than to be reminded of the good in the world, and what love for your fellow man really means. COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS was the novella that introduced my readers to this place and the people who live there. Each story is a stand-alone book, but with continuing characters that pop in and out of ensuing episodes of life in Blessings. The latest saga to come out of Blessings is…

Writing books for a living is nothing to complain about: I work from home, I spend my days largely uninterrupted, and then, you know, there are the champagne parties, the ball gowns and the book launches parties with cake pops because oh my God I never really got over the cake pop craze and it’s become a little embarrassing. I live on a military base, so my alarm clock is less the soothing sounds of my local radio station, and more the sound of five aircraft taking off about 500m from my bedroom window. I roll over, stretch and then remember my deadlines. An empty pit opens in my stomach. I get out of bed, put my glasses on and go into the bathroom. Too much. I remove my glasses and everything looks much better – good enough for me to think that last night’s make up will do for the day too. The first celebration of the day is when I realize that my dog hasn’t pooped in the kitchen. Fist pump. It’s going to be a good day, and obviously the pup is feeling better too. Win-win. After coffee, I give the dogs a quick walk. The looks…

I typically write historical romances set in England, but for this series, I decided to switch things up and head north to Scotland. Just like the Townsend family in ENCHANTING THE EARL, I made my own voyage to Scotland (albeit in cars and planes instead of driving a carriage for weeks over rough terrain). Since I don’t have room to list all the things I loved about my trip, I’ll limit myself to five. The Highlands. Scotland is beautiful and the Highlands in particular are a striking and unique mix of windswept moors, high mountain peaks, lush green hills, deep lochs, and vast gray sea. In some parts, it looks almost otherworldly. If you can handle a little inclement weather, the scenery is definitely worth the trip. The food. Food snobs might look down on me for this, but whatever—I thought the food was pretty tasty. The seafood is super fresh, and you can get it however you like it, from steamed mussels in a fancy meal to the golden fried perfection of fish and chips. I was a little iffy on haggis (though it certainly wasn’t bad), and I surprised myself by liking black pudding. Also, the desserts— cranachan…

My new book, MARRY IN HASTE is the start of a brand new “Convenient Marriage” series. It stars Cal Rutherford, an officer in the army, who has just become Lord Ashendon. Cal is a man’s man, a career soldier who thinks he knows how to handle women, but really has no idea. Hint: they’re not the same as soldiers; strangely, women don’t take kindly to being ordered around. Cal does, however, know how to kiss. Here he is walking our heroine, Emmaline Westwood home at night, after she was caught up in a brawl at a political meeting. They’re in Bath. It’s their first kiss. He broke off, noticing, in the light of the lamp overhead, a stain on her otherwise pale face. “Stand still,” he ordered, and when she glanced at him in surprise he caught her by the shoulders and turned her toward the light. A bruise was forming on her cheekbone, and dried blood made a dark crust around one of her nostrils. And, now that he looked, drops of blood stained the front of her clothing. “Dammit, you were injured too. Why didn’t you say something?” Flustered, she tried to move away. “I’m perfectly all r—”…

The most popular book set in Colorado is Stephen King’s The Shining set at the fictional Overlook (aka The Stanley Hotel). That should have been a gimme, but I missed that question recently, which is crazy because the haunted history tour of The Stanley Hotel ranks as one of the best cross sections of literature, history, and pop culture in my experience. In fact, our trip to the hotel sparked several scenes in UNSTOPPABLE. Every summer we like to spend a few days in Grand Lake, CO where I worked in the summers before and after my senior year, and it’s still one of my favorite places on the planet. The kids had recently watched The Shining (both versions) after having convinced me that it wouldn’t give them nightmares for the rest of their lives, and they wanted to visit The Stanley. I had never taken Trail Ridge Road through the Rocky Mountain National Forest between Grand Lake and Estes Park, but it was summer, so it shouldn’t be a problem. Right? The tour guide at The Stanley told us that King had been en route to Grand Lake to do some writing when he got stuck thanks to a…

Author/Reader Match Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Reader Match” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Megan Hart. Writes: Hello! I’m Megan. I write sexy romances and erotic fiction, along with mainstream novels that sometimes make you cry. My new book, All the Lies We Tell, is sexy contemporary romance. About: Megan Hart writes books. Some of them use a lot of bad words, but most of the other words are okay. She can’t live without music, the internet, or the ocean, but she and soda have achieved an amicable uncoupling. She can’t stand the feeling of corduroy or velvet, and modern art leaves her cold. She writes a little bit of everything from horror to romance, though she’s best known for writing erotic fiction that sometimes makes you cry. Find out more about her at meganhart.com, or if you really want to get crazy, follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/megan_hart and Facebook at www.facebook.com/readinbed. What I’m looking for in my ideal reader match: Open minded Craves passion and surprise Likes to experience a wide…

My love of travel borders on obsession. Seriously … I never get tired of talking about, researching, or planning a trip. I’m that annoying friend who wants to know everything about your adventures in Europe or your trek to Machu Picchu. Yes, I even enjoy looking through the endless supply of pictures you took while away. Even though I’d never turn down a nice beach vacation, my personal preference is to move on a trip. I crave activity. I get bored sitting around a pool and antsy by my second umbrella-decked cocktail. Exploring an area—whether a rainforest, chic urban local, or historic ruins—is my idea of travel bliss. When I travel to a new location or research a possible future destination, I always consider each as a potential setting for one of my novels. Would it add beauty, depth, and interest to my story? Even better, would it provide my characters with challenges and rewards able to push them together, tear them apart, or both? (Why not let the setting do some of the heavy lifting in creating conflict, right?) With these requirements in mind, here is a countdown of my top five international travel destinations that would make great…