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A Short Interview with Kat Martin

February 10, 2015 by in category Spotlight tagged as , ,

Kat MartinNew York Times bestselling author Kat Martin is a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara where she majored in Anthropology and also studied History.   Before she started writing in 1985, Kat was a real estate broker.  During that time she met her husband, L.J. Martin, author of thirty western, non-fiction, historical, and suspense novels.  A resident of Missoula, Montana, Kat and her husband spend their winters in Ventura, California.  She is a currently writing her next Romantic Suspense.

 

With fifty-five novels to her credit and more than fifteen million copies of her books in print, Ms. Martin has been published in twenty-one foreign countries including France, Japan, Greece, Argentina, Russia, Sweden, Turkey, China, and Spain. Here is a short interview with Ms. Martin.

 

Have you ever suffered writer’s block? If so, how did/do you get past it?

 

I mostly suffer plotting block…that means I have my hero and heroine in deep trouble and I’m racking my brain, trying to figure out how to get them out.  I spend about half the time thinking and the other half writing a book.  I make a lot of notes, try to get some input from my husband, who’s also a writer.

 

What profession other than your own would you love to attempt? 

 

I wanted to be an astrophysicist.  Unfortunately, I don’t have that big a brain.

 

What’s the funniest (or sweetest or best or nicest) thing a fan ever said to you?

 

I had a wonderful email yesterday from a fan thanking me for the uplifting words I said to her mother who has cancer.  Sometimes readers tell me they escape their problem in the pages of my books.  I love hearing that.

 

If you could travel back in time whom would you like to meet and why?

Be fun to meet Buffalo Bill Cody.  He was a true hero and a legend, a handsome man in his day, too!

 

If a space ship landed in your backyard and the aliens on board offered to take you for a ride, would you go? Why or why not?

I would definitely go with them.  Life on earth is much too short.  Gotta jam in all you can.  Imagine what you could learn from a trip to another planet?

 

What’s the best thing about being an author? 

The great people you meet and the places you get to visit to research a book.

 

What are you currently working on and when can we read it

I just finished the edits for Against the Tide, which is Rafe Brodie’s story.  It’s the last of my Brodies of Alaska series, out May 27th.  After that, I’m sticking with the Brodies, introducing Nick’s cousin Ethan, a hunky PI and bodyguard who works at BOSS, Inc in Seattle, the first of my INTO books.  Into the Fury is book #1, out February, 2016.
You can read more about Kat on her website: www.KatMartin.com.

Or follow her on social media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KatMartinAuthor

Twitter: @katbooks https://twitter.com/katbooks

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/luvromance/

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Kat-Martin/e/B000AQ0OJQ/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/49381.Kat_Martin

Kat’s current book, Against The Sky, will debut at No. 7 on the New York Times Bestseller list.

Against The Sky | Kat Martin

It is available at the following online stores:

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1420133845/

BN: 

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/against-the-sky-kat-martin/1119437332?ean=9781420133844

Indiebound:

http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781420133844

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Writing Romantic Suspense

January 27, 2015 by in category Guest Posts, Spotlight tagged as , , ,

I’ve always been a plot-oriented writer, which can be a boon or a burden. When I came up with the idea to write three books set in Alaska, I knew immediately knew I wanted the stories to revolve around three brothers. I had written about the Raines brothers when I began my AGAINST Series with Jackson, Gabe, and Dev, in AGAINST THE WIND, AGAINST THE FIRE, and AGAINST THE LAW. 

I loved the interaction between the three men and wanted to try it again. I knew I wanted all three of the brothers to be tough outdoorsmen, the kind of guys who face the harsh challenges of Alaska every day.

Being a plot-oriented author, the stories that came to mind didn’t all fit into one tiny town. AGAINST THE WILD was set in the fictional village of Watertown on the Alaska panhandle near the real town of Wrangell. AGAINST THE SKY is set near Anchorage, AGAINST THE TIDE is in Valdez. The action takes place miles apart, but the Brodie brothers, Dylan, Nick, and Rafe have a very strong bond. The kind of men who are there for each other, no matter what dangers might befall them.

In AGAINST THE SKY, Nick Brodie, a former Army Ranger and ex-Anchorage homicide detective, has a serious case of burnout. He wants a new life, something that doesn’t include violence and death. Unfortunately when his neighbor, twelve-year-old Jimmy Evans, comes to him beaten and battered, claiming his father was murdered, Nick has no choice but to help him.

To make matters worse, Nick has a lady friend visiting from San Francisco. Samantha Hollis, owner of the Perfect Pup pet grooming parlor, isn’t cut out for the harsh life in Alaska. Unwillingly swept into Jimmy’s problems, she finds herself on a wild ride with Nick that leads them both into passion and terrible danger.

Because I write bigger stories, this one pulls Nick and Samantha into the seedy world of drugs and prostitution when they come up against the Russian mafia.

It’s one of my favorite stories–lots of heart in this one.

I hope you enjoy AGAINST THE SKY and that you’ll watch for Rafe, the oldest Brodie brother, in AGAINST THE TIDE, out May 27th. Until then, all best and happy reading.

 Kat

Twitter: @katbooks

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/luvromance/
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Kat-Martin/e/B000AQ0OJQ/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/49381.Kat_Martin


One lucky random commenter with recieve a copy paperback or ebook copy of AGAINST THE SKY. (United States, only.)

AGAINST THE SKY
By Kat Martin

Release date: 1/27/15
AGAINST THE SKY is a fish out of water story.  Nick Brodie, an ex-Anchorage cop, is tough as nails, a true man’s man, comfortable in the hard life in Alaska.  But Samantha Hollis, owner of a pet grooming parlor in San Francisco likes shopping at Sak’s and a day at the spa.   Unwillingly swept into Nick’s problems, Samantha finds herself on a wild ride that leads them in to passion and terrible danger. 
It was fun finding ways to make their relationship work when they seem so very far apart. This one’s very fast paced, but it has a soft heart.  It turned out to be one of my favorites.

KAT’s WEBSITE

AGAINST THE SKY BOOK TRAILER VIDEO

CONTEST
BUY LINKS

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Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ – Oh My, Oh My, Oh My!!

May 2, 2014 by in category Jann says . . . tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Jann Ryann
I’m technology challenged. When it comes to the social media world I’m plain scared. Just the thought of posting something incorrectly has stopped me dipping my toe into the water for years. My goal is to break through the fear. When OCC announced its Online Class schedule I was thrilled. There it was– April’s class–Social Media for the Confused and Terrified presented by Elena Dillon. No more excuses by golly. I signed up.
Week 1 – The class started with Facebook, and for four days straight I had my desktop and laptop computers running side by side. Reading lessons and asking questions on one, doing class assignments on the other. I was learning about personal pages and author pages, friending and liking. Even though I’ve had a personal FB page for several years, I’ve never really interacted on it. I had started an author page (Jann Ryan), but hadn’t made it public to the world because I’m not a published author. Well, I hit the published button and it’s now live. To support my fellow classmates (which are a terrific group), I’m friending and liking and trying to comment on posts.
By the fourth day, I was on Facebook overload. I needed a bit of a break, so I thought I would start going through a couple of my file boxes filled with years of writing paraphernalia (handouts, conference stuff, articles and pages of stories.) It was suggested by a good friend to scan what I wanted to keep and toss the rest. I DIDN’T COME OUT OF THE ROOM FOR 4 DAYS! I was scanning and tossing from morning till way into the night. My determination to master FB was transferred to cleaning out paper. I couldn’t stop myself. From the file boxes, I moved to the bookshelves, then back to the file boxes. I was obsessed.
Week 2 – Monday, I came up for air only to be confronted with the next week’s class–TWITTER.  I hadn’t conquered Facebook, now I was facing the Twitter monster with its hashtags, retweets and Tweet chats. Thanks to the wonderful instruction and guidance from my teacher Elena, I marched into the Twitter world. I installed Tweetdeck and selected people to follow. I was fortunate to see meet up Beth Yarnall, author of the Azalea March Mysteries, The Misadventures of Maggie Mae and the Pleasure at Home Series, who gave me some hands-on instructions. Check out her website http://www.bethyarnall.com/ .  I’m still feeling awkward with Twitter, but I know I’ll be Twittering up a storm soon.
Week 3 – My Waterloo is Google+. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been receiving great instructions, but I realize I need hands on instructions when walking into the unknown. I get the overall idea, but just can’t seem to figure it all out. I need to spend more time on my lessons and work with it more, but life is getting in the way this week.  It’s similar to FB, but now I Hangout with a Circle of Friends (actually, I’m not hanging anywhere yet).
I have one more week to go and one more social media item to learn. Heaven help me.
All that being said, I’m happy I ventured into this new world. I have some wonderful classmates and a great teacher, Young Adult Romantic Suspense author Elena Dillon. Stop by her website http://elenadillon.com/.  
Go forth and conquer!

Jann Ryan grew up with the smell of orange blossoms in Orange County in sunny Southern California, where she has lived her entire life and dreamed up stories since she was a young girl. Never an avid reader, she was in her thirties when she picked up her first romance quite by accident. She fell in love with happily ever after and has been reading romances ever since.

Wanting to put pen to paper, Jann joined Romance Writers of America. Currently, she is working on a romantic suspense series set in Stellar Bay, a fictitious town along the California central coast to fulfill her publishing dream.

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RWA National 2012

July 6, 2012 by in category Events, Pets, Romance & Lots of Suspense by Linda O. Johnston tagged as , , , ,

RWA National 2012

It’s July–and my first Harlequin Romantic Suspense novel, UNDERCOVER SOLDIER, is available this month.


Also, it’s almost time for the Romance Writers of America National Conference!

This year, OCC members, it’s in our backyard. I’d imagine that most of you plan to attend.
As I do every year, I’ve been keeping track of all my upcoming meetings and parties at National on my online calendar, since it can be updated easily. I’ve unfortunately started running into conflicts, but I’ll do all I can to squeeze everything in.

That includes the panel I’m on, on Friday, July 27, at 2 PM. It’s on Writing a Series You’re Passionate About, and among the participants are OCC member Pat Wright (writing as Patricia Thayer) and our agent Paige Wheeler of Folio Literary Management. Come hear us–and bring questions!

I’ll also be at the Literacy Signing on Wednesday evening, so if you’re there come and say hi. I believe I’ll additionally be at the Berkley signing on Friday morning.

I hope to see you all there!
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