Author Interview: Tonya Ramagos

Exquisite Quills Welcomes Tonya Ramagos!

EQ: Welcome to EQ! Tell us a little bit about yourself!

Tonya: I live in Harrison, Tennessee in a house full of chaos and fun. Between my honey and I, we have 5 children ranging in ages from 19 to 3 years old and 4 cats that keep everyday interesting. We never know what will happen next! Almost everything I do is with the family…bike riding, hiking, fishing, trips to the drive-in, and anything else we find to keep us entertained. Writing is my passion and I’m thankful every day that I get to follow my dream. When I’m not writing or hanging with the family, I love to curl up with a good book or go for a night on the town playing darts.

EQ: What was your defining moment as a writer?

Tonya: I attended my first Romantic Times Convention in 2010 in Orlando, FL. I knew I had built a following of readers during my career, but being recognized and actually having them come up to me in person was the moment I really realized I was reaching and entertaining readers with my books.

EQ: What are your top three guilty pleasures?

Tonya: Chocolate. Almost anything is better with chocolate except my waistline.

Spider Solitaire. I spend way too much time playing that game when I should be writing.

Smoking. Yep, I confess. I smoke. I quit for 4 years and stupidly started back. It’s by far my worst guilty pleasure, but I will give it up again.

EQ: What is the biggest risk you’ve taken in your writing?

Tonya: I would have to say it was the choice I made in 1999 to focus on ebook publishers rather than the traditional print houses. Back then, ebook publishing was totally new and wasn’t expected to last. I disagreed, understanding the way technology was already taking over our lives. Despite tons of advice and criticism, I stuck with it and have never regretted it.

EQ: Tell us a little bit about your most recent release.

Tonya: Safe and Coasting with Ecstasy is book 2 of The Heroes of Silver Island series. This series is a spinoff of sorts from my well-known The Heroes of Silver Springs series. Silver Island is located off the coast of Silver Springs. It is an island that caters to people in ménage relationships. Kimberly Bevel is the heroine in Safe and Coasting with Ecstasy. She’s found her place on Silver Island. In a community where ménage relationships are the norm, all she’s missing is the love of two super-sexy hunks to complete her paradise. When she meets Coast Guard Petty Officers Emmett "Mett" and Charlie Doyle, she knows she’s found the men she wants, even if the brothers aren’t eager to share.

Mett and Charlie have been equally attracted to women before, but Kimberly is the first neither have been willing to walk away from. There’s little more important to Mett than a woman’s happiness, and he knows exactly how to deliver it. Charlie isn’t as suave as Mett, but he’s got a few moves up his sleeve.

While the brothers go head-to-head in their efforts to win Kimberly’s heart, she looks for a way to keep them both. But when she becomes the target of a madman, she may need Mett and Charlie to do more than keep her bed warm at night.

Find Tonya Ramagos here:

Website: http://www.tonyaramagos.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tonya.ramagos

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tonya-Ramagos/e/B0088I776Q/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1389049739&sr=1-2-ent

Siren-BookStrand: http://www.bookstrand.com/tonya-ramagos

Enjoy these other titles by Tonya Ramagos:

The Heroes of Silver Island:

Safe and SEALed with Ecstasy

Safe and Coasting with Ecstasy

Safe and Burning with Ecstasy (coming January 31, 2014)

For a complete list of other titles, please visit http://www.bookstrand.com/tonya-ramagos

The Genesis of a Book - Cat's Curse by Kelley Heckart

My inspiration for Cat’s Curse:

I set out to write a story set in Scotland. I knew I wanted the hero to be cursed and that the heroine was going to be a vampire, but I had no idea what time period I wanted to set the story. For inspiration, I purchased this book on eBay called In Search of the Picts. As soon as I came across an Irish king named Aedan mac Gabrain who ruled in the southwest of Dark Age Scotland from 574AD to 603AD, I knew I had found my hero and my time period.

According to historical records, The Irish Annals, The Life of Saint Columba and The Welsh Triads, Aedan had a shadowy past, living near the Forth River in a time when Scotland was called Alba. During this time before he became king, he may have fathered a future king of the Picts. He was a contemporary of St. Columba and in the Welsh Triads, he was called “Aedan the Treacherous.” As king of Dal Riata, he fought and won many battles, some of these battles were against the Picts. He was one of the most feared warlords of his time.

He fascinated me and I came up with an idea for a curse that revolved around his clan, Brigit (a Tuatha de Danaan goddess), Cailleach (an ancient goddess known in Ireland and Scotland) and an ancient Greek vampire. This curse is connected to the legend of a winter and summer goddess and also connected to the final battle between the Sons of Mil and the Tuatha de Danaan. Aedan mac Gabrain inspired me so much that Cat’s Curse ended up being the first book in a trilogy.

Blurb for Cat’s Curse:

A Celtic prince, an ancient vampire and two curses…

Cardea, follower of the Great Goddess, is cursed to live an eternity as a blood drinker. For centuries she has lived with hate hunting and feeding off humans. Now she finds herself at the end of a sword blade held by the most handsome and arrogant man she has ever met. 

Aedan mac Gabrain, prince of Dal Riata and a Christian, trusts no one after suffering a curse that keeps him from touching any females or he will turn into a black cat like his brother. He especially distrusts this strange female who could be the one who cursed his clan since no one knows Cat Anna's true face.

Can two tortured souls find love while battling a dark goddess determined to destroy them?

Cat's Curse (Bk 1), Beltaine’s Song (Bk 2) and Winter’s Requiem (Bk 3) are all available now in Print and Ebook.

Buy links: http://kelleyheckart.com/BookShelf.html

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

First Kiss Wednesday

It's  First Kiss Wednesday!

 
Kisses are the mainstay of romance writing.  No matter how sweet or spicy our stories are, they usually involve at least a kiss or two.  And the first kiss is especially lovely - that first, soft touch of lips - or perhaps the kiss is fierce and hungry.  Maybe the characters murmur words of love or words of teasing while discovering the texture and taste of each other.  Maybe the only sounds they can emit are gentle, timorous moans or deep, throaty groans.

Okay, now that we've set the premise, here's what you can do for First Kiss Wednesdays.  In the comment box, give us a maximum of 300 words of the first kiss of a published work or a work-in-progress and one link to your website or blog or Amazon Author Page. 

Read and luxuriate in the glories of the first kiss...

Oh, and lips only...  ;-)

Set the Scene in Six Sentences Sunday - Share the Six!

One of the finest aspects of fiction writing is the ability to set the scene.  Characters act and react, but they don't do so in a vacuum.  In their world, they meet, fall in love, solve problems, sometimes horrendous problems.  Maybe it's a small town, maybe the big city, the green, humid jungle, dust-dry desert, a mountainous region.  On the sea.  Under the sea.  In space! 

Setting the scene sets up the unexpected. It's also done by using character dialogue to paint a picture of loveliness, danger, evil, trepidation, excitement, awe...

Give us six sentences that set the scene.  Set the Scene in Six Sentences - Sunday is a new opportunity on the Exquisite Quills Blog to tout your talent.  How have you set the scene or the lead-up in your books?  How have you put the reader into the life of your characters?

Every Sunday, the blog will be open to six-sentence scene-setting.  Just post your six sentences, your name, and one link in the comment box.  We can't wait to read you!

Pass the word!  Open to all!