Thursday, December 9, 2010

Book Giveaway with Elaina Lee!


I'm very excited to welcome romance author Elaina Lee to Whispers. Elaina is the author of the newly released romantic suspense, Written In Blood.

Anyone who leaves a comment on today's interview will be entered into a drawing to win a copy of Elaina's book, Written In Blood.

Enjoy the interview, and don't forget to include your email address when you comment so Elaina will be able to get in touch with our winner.

NOTE: This contest has ended. Elaina will contact the WINNER soon!


Hello, Elaina, and thanks for stopping by. Tell us a little about yourself.

Thank you, Rhiannon. I'm really excited to be here! Well, let's see… About me. I live in the South, but I'm a transplant. I was raised in Oregon and moved here after I married. We have a teenager now, and a toddler. I don't know which one's worse, LOL! They both whine, scream and get on my nerves. Yet they both amaze me as they evolve into individuals. I've been writing since I was twelve, when my teacher gave us our first assignment. We had to write a fantasy. Mine was about a young girl who lost her parents and discovered she could talk to the animals on her aunt and uncles farm. I wrote almost twenty thousand words! Next was an RL Stine contest our English teacher wanted us to enter, we had to write fives pages. I wrote an entire notebook. I haven't stopped writing since. The characters just won't leave me alone!

Written In Blood was released last month by Noble Romance. What's the story about?

Lyndi Crisdean is a defense attorney representing a serial killer. She's unaware that a cult is after her, hoping to use her as their next sacrifice. Alek Trevian, the lead investigator for the DA's office, is investing her client. He shifts his attention to the cult when Lyndi begins being harassed by them. Working for opposite sides of the law, Alek and Lyndi's relationship is forbidden, especially since Alek is investigating her client. But, as the dangers being to mount against her, and Alek is the only person who can help, they find themselves drawn together and sooner or later, they're going to break the rules…

Your heroine is a defense attorney, and your hero is an investigator. What kind of research did you have to do in order to create authentic characters?

Oh my gosh, well, for starters I read every field manual I could get my hands on. I found Tennessee had the best one, as their police force has an investigative unit, similar to the FBI's. The manual is amazingly thorough. For Lyndi, I read about five law books and enlisted the help of my good friend and fellow writer, Amber Green, who is a lawyer by day (and an amazing erotica writer by night). I tried to keep the career descriptions to a minimum since I didn't want a legal thriller, but focus more on their careers affecting their personal lives, rather than their careers being the focal point of the story.

Written In Blood is a romantic suspense, but you write many other genres as well. If you had to pick a few as favorites, what would they be?

Romantic suspense is definitely one of my favorites. I love angst and torture and all the heavy and difficult emotions that come with suspense. I enjoy writing alpha males who have a purpose, LOL, and heroines who can be strong, yet need help because they can't do it alone. If I could ever get one to work, Historical's are also a passion of mine. But my characters hate conforming and history is full of rules I rarely like to break. History buffs know better and I wouldn't want to disappoint anyone. I recently ventured into romantic comedy, for fun. A way for me to write what it's like living in the south as a transplant. When Reese Witherspoon said, "You need a passport to come down here" in Sweet Home Alabama, she wasn't kidding! I've been having great fun with it. Describing the amazing sweet natured way people are down here, coupled with football obsessions, the slower way of life, and the massive bugs, from the view point of a northern city boy, how could you go wrong?

Do you have any other books coming out in the near future? If so, when can we expect your next book?

I do have another book coming out in the future! The title is First Kiss, it's a New Years novella, being released through Decadent Publishing. I don't have a release date yet, but I'm crossing my fingers it's released in time for readers to bring in the New Year with that warm fuzzy feeling we all adore when we read romances.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Before you go, where can readers/writers find you and your work online?

Thank you so much for having me! I can be found at either http://www.elainalee.com/ or http://www.forthemusedesign.com/. My blog is http://www.elaina-lee.blogspot.com/ and of course http://www.nobleromance.com/ and soon http://www.decadentpublishing.com/.

Big thanks to Elaina Lee for stopping by and participating in a giveaway. Leave a comment along with your email address, and you might win a copy of Written In Blood.

15 comments:

  1. What a great interview and incredible giveaway! I love Love LOVE romantic suspense! Everything is ratcheted up ten notches for the lovers where emotion is involved. I slide into those stories so readily its amazing (probably because I - personally- am afraid of e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g) LOL. Thanks again for a great interview. Fingers crossed to win an great new novel!! Whee!

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  2. Congrats on our new release. The cover is great. I'm from Central California, I write romance, usually the mainstream kind because I like to spread my wings and tell a deeper story than just one about two people falling in love, separating and then reuniting. I have all that, but it's mixed with lots of alligators chasing down my heroine. Good luck with your book. Julie Gettys, a Blue Ridge kinda gal. juliegettys@gmail.com

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  3. Thanks for the opportunity to win! Sounds extremely interesting. Congrats & Good luck to you!

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  4. Sounds like a very interesting read. Best of luck to Elaina!

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  5. Thank you everyone! And thank you again, Rhiannon!

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  6. You're very welcome, Elaina! Everyone--keep the comments coming for a chance to win a free copy of Written In Blood.

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  7. You had me when you said, "the characters just won't leave you alone." Ah, yes, the mental population of a writer's mind. Much luck in your release. Sounds great!

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  8. I hate it when those pesky voices taunt and torture when we're trying to deal with our own HEA! Your cover rocks!

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  9. Great interview, Elaina. I surely can relate to the transplant thing! I grew up in Washington State and migrated to Texas! It really is like moving to a foreign country, and what a great learning experience. I'm excited about your book and hope it does well. I'll be following your progress and wish you the best of luck, from one transplant to another! patty_wiseman1966@yahoo.com

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  10. Great interview, I enjoyed learning a little bit more about you. Congrats on the release, Elaina.

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  11. Wow, I'm really impressed with all the research that went into this book.
    Congrats!

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  12. My daughter loved RL Stine. I think she had every book. Wishing you many, many sales, Elaina!

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  13. I exclude myself from Elaina's drawing (cause I'm gonna buy it!) but I wanted to say how proud I am of you! Your cover art is beautiful, too. I'm not just biased because you're a crit partner, you're a wonderful writer! I'm envous of your talent!

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  14. Thank you so, so much everyone! You all made my day! Thought I'd stop by and say thank you and let you all know, Jerri was the lucky winner! I found a name selector on the internet and it scrolled through three or for times and stopped on Jerri! :-D

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  15. Congrats on your book Elaina...You sound alot like my youngest daughter--characters inside the head. I write, too, but my characters don't haunt me as much as the story line does. My daughter was so involved with her characters that they came to in her sleep and even jump off her bunk bed into the floor one night in her sleep. She scared me to death! Anyhow, best of luck to you!

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