Lynda Bailey is here to talk about her writing and her newest novel "Battle Born Love." We both love company, so leave a comment with any questions or thoughts you might have.
Why I wrote BATTLE-BORN LOVE
I’d like to thank Kathryn for letting me hang out today at Writer’s Naughty Thoughts!
I’ve pondered this question of why I wrote BATTLE-BORN LOVE for quite some time. I’m usually not blessed with a singular moment or inspiration which demands I write a particular story. Rather, an idea takes hold then blossoms into a series of “what ifs.” It’s through those “what ifs” that the plotline begins to develop.
In the case of BATTLE-BORN LOVE, the “idea” sprouted when I heard about a repo business that was once called Accounts Retrievable. My first reaction was what a cool name! Since men are usually the owners/operators of repo businesses, I thought “what if” a woman (Rory Dawson) owns the business instead? (I love giving my heroines atypical jobs. J) Then “what if” the hero (Kane Williams) is a total white collar guy, say a banker? How do these two first meet? The obvious answer is because something of Kane’s gets repoed by Rory. From there, I massaged the plot points, gave both Rory and Kane personal demons to overcome and soon the outline of BATTLE-BORN LOVE came to life.
But that doesn’t really answer the “Why I wrote BATTLE-BORN LOVE” question, does it?
The sad fact is I wrote this story because I heard an interesting name of a repo business and my muse hung onto the idea of a woman repo owner like a dog with a bone.
Kinda pathetic, I know. Nonetheless, it’s the truth.
Thanks again, Kathryn, for hosting me today!
BATTLE-BORN LOVE Excerpt
Her eyes slammed shut and she banged her head against
the wall. “Damn it.” She looked at him, her expression guilty instead of angry.
“I was so nervous about tonight and meeting your friends, I didn’t pay
attention to anything you said.” Her wide eyes knocked down most of his ire.
She bit the corner of her lip. “Sorry.”
Kane straightened, his gaze fastened to her mouth as
her teeth released the fleshy lower lip. He suppressed his growl on a cough.
“It doesn’t matter. We should leave. It was wrong to put you in this situation
tonight after everything you’ve gone through in the past twenty-four hours.”
From the corner of his eye, he saw two assistant managers from the downtown
office pass by, staring. He edged Rory closer to the wall to shield her. “We’ll
say you’re not feeling well and go.”
She placed a hand on his arm. “How will that work?
Both Morgan and Bridget know I’m feeling just fine.”
Damn it. She was right. He massaged the tight muscles
in his neck, trying to figure a way out of the evening.
Her hand squeezed. “We’ll stay. I promise to stay by
your side and be the best fake girlfriend ever. No one will suspect anything.
In fact…” Her gaze slid over to the managers who were still ogling them. “I
think it’s show time.”
Before he could react, Rory wrapped both hands around
his neck and pulled him to her waiting lips. Her tongue made an immediate foray
into his mouth and his world zeroed down to nothing. No restaurant. No bank
people. Nothing.
He tilted her head up with his knuckle while his thumb
stroked her cheek, his tongue sparring with hers. He needed his other hand
propped on the wall for support.
To a casual observer, the kiss probably didn’t seem
all that intense. What a lie.
Small sounds, only he could hear, emanated from deep
in her throat as her body quivered close to his. He thought again about
leaving, now for a very different reason.
She broke the kiss and her eyes, bright and iridescent
skewed him. “We should get back to your friends.”
In reluctant moves, he shifted back to give her room
to move. Her hand squeezed his arm. “If you want to continue this later, you’ll
know where I’ll be. In your bedroom.”
His thoughts on that,
he followed behind her to the group.
How long did you write before you were
published? I guess I’ve been
writing for about twenty years before making the jump into independent
publishing. Our son was three when I wrote my first “story” as an adult. He’ll
be twenty-four in June.
What genres do you write
besides contemporary romance?
I also write erotic and historical
romance.
When do you write,
morning or night? I tend to write more
in the mornings, but that’s not a hard and fast rule. If the house is quiet (ie
my hubby isn’t home J) I’ve been known to bang out pages in the evenings
as well.
What are you currently
reading? I’m usually reading a
couple of books at one time – one in print and one digital. On my tablet, I’m
enjoying Lily Rede’s anthology, The Kringle Girls and in print, Run the Risk,
by Lori Foster.
How did you come up with
your title? Battle-Born Love was first
titled Accounts Retrievable because my heroine, Rory, owns a
repo business. (I’d heard about a repo place named Accounts Retrievable.
Catchy, huh?) But when I realized some of the secondary characters also had a
story to tell, I knew I needed a title which could be “tweaked” for subsequent
books. That’s when I came up with Battle-Born Love, which is the
first in my Battle for Love series. (It also helped that the
story is set in Nevada – The Battle Born State. J)
Are there any new
authors that have grasped your interest? Lily Rede, Qwillia Rain and Delilah
Devlin, though I don’t know how “new” Delilah Devlin is—she’s just new to me.
Can you share a little
of your current work with us? I’ve got two releases coming up. Naughty
Neighborhood, which is an anthology with three short stories and one
novella, and a very spicy read btw. And the second novella in my On the
Corner of Heartache and Hopeful series, another fiery read.
Is there anything you
find particularly challenging about writing? Only everything! LOL Seriously, if I
don’t get the characters and their motivations right, I end up spinning my
wheels (and spinning in circles) until I figure out exactly what it is that
they want and why they want it.
Who is your favorite
author and what is it that really strikes you about her work? Lorraine Heath is my
all-time favorite author. If she wrote a grocery list, I’d pay money to read
it. She has an almost super-human ability to bring her characters to life.
Who designed your cover? The fabulous team at
The Killion Group, also known as Hot Damn Designs.
Do you have any advice
for other writers? No matter what, never
give up.
Do you have anything
specific that you want to say to your readers? I’m truly honored and
grateful that you allowed me into your head (and hopefully heart) by reading my
book. Thanks for your support!
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Thanks for visiting Lynda, I'm sure my readers enjoyed journeying with you. Readers, if you want to know more about Lynda, or her books, please check out her tour with CLP by clicking the following: http://www.clpblogtours.com/2012/11/battle-born-love-by-lynda-bailey.html
Lynda Bailey was a 2010 finalist for the Romance Writers of
America® Golden Heart® award. She lives in Reno with her hubby of thirty years
and two high-need pooches. She's been making up stories ever since she was a
little girl.
For Lynda, writing is the best thing next to red
wine and dark chocolate. She especially loves writing romance because no matter
the odds, the good guys always win at the end! Visit her at www.lyndabailey.net.
