Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy again, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

First of all, thank all you folks at Much Cheaper Than Therapy for inviting me to stop by your blog again. It's a delight to be here to talk about, One Hot Cowboy Wedding, which just hit the bookshelves this week. It's the fourth book in the Spikes & Spurs Series and I'm so excited about it. I'm going to refill my coffee cup and get another chocolate donut and then we'll be ready. Okay, I'm settled ... now let's answer questions.

I understand you have a new release out called One Hot Cowboy Wedding. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Oh, yes, ma'am. I could talk about this book forever so how much room do you have? The Spikes & Spurs series started out to be a trilogy about three women who trade in their high heels for cowboy boots and the cowboys who convinced them that sexy cowboys in their boots and hats had something lasting to offer. The three sassy ladies were Austin, Pearl and Jasmine; the cowboys were Rye, Wil and Ace. Then my amazing editor called and asked for a Christmas book and since Rye's brother, Raylen, had been begging for his story to be told, the trilogy turned into a series. But now it's time to tell Jasmine and Ace's story and they do have a story to tell. Ace is about to lose his ranch if he doesn't find a wife within the week so Jasmine, being his best friend, says she'll marry him. It's supposed to be a quiet wedding and in a year a very discreet, quiet divorce. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right? Well, that's the truth unless it gets broadcast on national television. And believe me, it's a lot easier to let the cat out of the bag than it is to put it back into the tow sack!

One Hot Cowboy Wedding is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

Well, there is a wedding right there at the beginning of the book and it turns out to be very, very hot in more ways than once.

What made you decide to write in this genre?

I'd been writing historical and contemporary books for about fifteen years for the literary market. I wanted to write bigger books that reached a larger audience so I queried Deb Werksman at Sourcebooks with Lucky in Love, a hot cowboy book and she bought it. I loved writing cowboy books so much that it's snowballed from that point. One Hot Cowboy Wedding is my eleventh cowboy book and there are at least three more on the way.

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

Neither and a bit of both. I'm not sure I could ever plot out a whole book and then write totally by the guidelines. It would put my characters in a box and believe me my characters are so sassy, they'd tear the walls down. I don't like to think of myself as a pantster, either. So I suppose, like I've said many times before, I'm like the pilot of a jet airplane. I fill the plane up with all these great characters, have my destination in mind (HEA) and know how to fly the plane. But then the characters hijack the plane and we go off on amazing adventures as we tell their stories.

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

I always do research. I couldn't begin to tell you how many trips I've made to Ringgold, Texas. The one hundred residents of that little place probably think my car is a spy vehicle! LOL! I use the internet for research and I have a multitude of wonderful books but the best thing I could ever advise is simply to go take a look at the place you are writing about. One time I was writing a historical series and had incorporated a scene where the hero and heroine were swimming in this beautiful creek. When we made a trip there and looked at that creek, it was located at the bottom of a red clay slope and the water wasn't something anyone would swim in. Yes, ma'am, I came right home and changed the scene and learned a valuable lesson!

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

I have no idea where it came from. One day Jasmine and Ace just jumped on the loveseat behind my computer and told me all about their lives and the story wouldn't leave my head until I'd written it.

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

I loved both of the main characters. Ace, because he was the playboy who was never settling down, and he had to finally listen to his heart. Jasmine, because she was the woman who had been burned by love and had to learn to trust her heart. And both of them because they didn't want to ruin their wonderful friendship by falling in love, but their hearts didn't get the message.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

Developing characters happens like friendships. At first I don't know much more than my readers but as we get on down the road with the story, I learn more and more. I have a recipe box that I keep a note card on each of my characters inside. That's about as far as it goes!

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

Every author I've ever read has inspired me. Every author I've ever visited with at a conference, a library panel, or had a conversation with in an airport has inspired me. This interview would go on forever if I named them all...however, lately Jill Mansell and Grace Burrowes have been added to my list.

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Blogs. Word of mouth. Those are both wonderful promotion tools.

What do we have to look forward next?

Keep your boots on! There are more cowboys on the way with at least three more Spikes and Spurs. Mistletoe Cowboy (October) is Creed Riley and Sage Presley's story...you'll meet Creed in One Hot Cowboy Wedding. Just A Cowboy (December) is Gemma O'Donnell and Trace Coleman's story. And Dewar, the last of the original O'Donnell siblings, gets his story after that. (Title is still up in the air but the book will probably be out in the spring of 2013). On the Avalon scene, the second book in the Three Magic Words trilogy, In Shining Whatever, will be out in April and the final one, Life After Wife, in August. Hidden Secrets, a stand alone romance, will be out in December.

Thanks, Carolyn!

And THANK YOU again for inviting me!


To celebrate her book release, Carolyn Brown is offering a free copy of One Hot Cowboy Wedding to TWO lucky commenters on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

She will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Bio.
Carolyn Brown is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author with more than fifty books published. She credits her eclectic family for her humor and writing ideas. Born in Texas and raised in southern Oklahoma, Carolyn and her husband now make their home in the town of Davis, Oklahoma.

Check out author’s website at
http://carolynlbrown.com/
Buy at Amazon, B&N, Wal-Mart and most major book stores.

Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest again today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

Good morning, MCTT!! It’s great to be here again. I always love coming back to Much Cheaper Than Therapy because the folks are great and the chocolate is fan-tab-u-lous! Okay, let me lick the chocolate off my fingers. I don’t believe in wiping it off. That’s such a waste, and I sure don’t want to get chocolate on the book cover when I hold up Darn Good Cowboy Christmas so y’all can see the hot cowboy on the front. Wonder what on earth is in that little box he’s holding? Hmmmm!

I understand you have a new release out called Darn Good Cowboy Christmas. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Liz Hanson was raised in a traveling carnival and all she ever wanted for Christmas was a house without wheels and a sexy cowboy of her very own. Her Uncle Haskell Hanson left her a house and twenty acres right in the middle of the O’Donnell horse ranch (Love Drunk Cowboy) but catching Raylen, the hotter-than-hell cowboy next door, might just take a little holiday magic.

Raylen O’Donnell is one smokin’ hot cowboy. He could have any woman in Montague County, Texas, but he’s never been able to forget a certain dark-haired girl who he met back when they were just kids and then she disappeared. So when she returns to Ringgold, Texas, Raylen’s not fixing to let her get away again.

Darn Good Cowboy Christmas is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

Actually, the name comes at the end of the book and with that in mind, I guess I worked backwards. I wondered what it would take to make a woman who’d never had stability and roots to settle down. Would a good old cowboy and the magic of Christmas do it?

What made you decide to write in this genre?

This is my tenth cowboy romance but many of my previous books are created around the home fires of a ranch or even cowboys. I like the cowboys’ attitude and the way they treat a sassy woman. Likewise, I like the way a cowboy is tamed by a sassy woman.

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

As I’ve mentioned before I don’t think I’m either. Publisher’s Weekly says that Darn Good Cowboy Christmas is carelessly plotted. And they are right. I don’t think life is a plotted affair and it sure doesn’t go by the calendar so why should books? A months worth of hard planning can all be tossed in the trash in a thirty second phone call. With that in mind, my books can easily be described as careless plotting. Life throws out speed bumps…it’s a fact! So hit ‘em at sixty miles an hour and wreck or hit ‘em at five miles and hour and get past them. I write about life and sometimes it does take on some drastic turns. Maybe reading about that is what brings my readers back for more.

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

I watched hours of belly dancing on the internet and made several more trips to Ringgold. You’d think I’d have that little town of less than a hundred people memorized down to the color of the trim on every house. But it helps refresh the mind to drive down there, sit at the crossroads and just look around. And there were trips to Wichita Falls, to Henrietta and to Terral…again!

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

My editor called me one morning and said she wanted a Christmas book. Did I have time to write it? Oh, yeah! I could write one. Which O’Donnell brother should I write about? She left that up to me so I decided to write about Raylen since it should have been Dewar getting his HEA next in line. One of those careless things that life throws at us! That very day we had to make a trip north to Norman and on the outskirts of our little town, there was a carnival setting up. The whole story flashed through my mind line one of those things you read about just before the end comes around. Lizelle Hanson was from that carnival and her Uncle Haskell owned the ranch next to the O’Donnell’s. She’d only been allowed to visit it twice in her life because her mother was afraid she’d want to settle down rather than stay with the carnival. It was all there. I just had to write the story.

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

Liz was my favorite in this book. She had to learn that you can’t really have wings and roots both and had to figure out which one was most important. Thank goodness Raylen was there to encourage her toward giving up her wings. But then I’d have to mention Blaze and Colleen, who had a little subplot. Blaze was one of those bad boys that is so much fun to write about.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

I don’t do much developing of characters beyond a physical description. Those I keep on note cards in a plastic recipe box for quick reference. Their character flaws and strengths are revealed to me much like they would be if we were getting to know each other in a very real world; on a day to day basis.

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

Every author I have ever read has inspired me in some way or another. Some to write better and tighter. Some to tell a better story. Some to make my writing more entertaining. Some to purely entertain me between my own deadlines. To each I owe a big thank you!

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Word of mouth. I love it when readers tell each other and they tell more and those spread the word and pretty soon everyone is wanting to buy a book. But I also depend on FB, websites and of course wonderful blogs like MCTT that help promote my books.

What do we have to look forward next?

As some of you know, I also write sweet romance for Avalon. So there’s an Avalon book coming out in the middle of October titled The Ladies Room. Then in December there is the debut book, A Forever Thing, for the Three Magic Words Trilogy. We kick off 2012 in April with One Hot Cowboy Wedding and also the second in the Avalon trilogy, In Shining Whatever. Then in August the final book in the Avalon trilogy, Live After Wife. On the cowboy side there will be two fall releases, an October Christmas book that has the working title, Star Studded Christmas Cowboy (Gemma O’Donnell’s story) and a fall book with the working title, Just a Cowboy (Dewar finally gets to tell his story). The debut of my first woman’s fiction book, Sinful Delights, will be in the fall of 2012 also. I’m very excited about all of the releases!

I’ve laid the book down now and have another piece of chocolate in my greedy little fingers but I can answer questions. Comments anyone? Questions?

Thanks, Carolyn!

To celebrate her book release, Carolyn is offering a free book of Darn Good Cowboy Christmas to one lucky commenter on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

She will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Bio.
NYT and USA Today best selling author, Carolyn Brown, has sold 64 books in the past 14 years. Fifteen have been printed in large print. The first four were translated into nine foreign languages and two have been redone into Manga format. Several are available in ebook format as well as print. She and her husband, a retired English teacher, make their home in Davis, Oklahoma. They have three grown children and too many grandchildren to list!

Check out author’s website at www.carolynlbrown.com

Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest again today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

Hello, everyone! Thank you so much for inviting me back to MCTT where I can always depend on chocolate with no calories or fat grams and a good lounge chair.

I understand you have a new release out called Red’s Hot Cowboy. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Oh, yes, ma’am. I could talk all day about Red’s Hot Cowboy. Pearl and Wil sat behind me on the loveseat in my office for a good many weeks and told me just how to write their story so I got to know them really well. They were two stubborn and determined characters who were bound and determined not to fall in love.

Wil wasn’t looking for trouble but when the lights went out in Henrietta and he didn’t have a bit of electricity he went hunting for a room so he could have a shower and a lamp to read by. And he couldn’t leave his Catahoula hound at home to freeze in the winter storm, could he? He should’ve known trouble had found him when he walked into a cat and dog fight in the Longhorn Inn and the spicy red head with an attitude bowed right up to him. Then to add more trouble to his woes, the next morning the cops were knocking on his door. It could be a big mistake but suddenly Wil needs that red haired piece of brassy baggage to alibi him out of a murder charge.

Poor Pearl Richland had left a party girl life in the city to move to Henrietta, Texas. Her Aunt Pearlita left her the Longhorn Inn, an old vintage motel and Pearl quit her job to run the motel. She was questioning her crazy decision when this hot cowboy came walking into her motel. Next thing she knows she’s thinking thoughts that steam up the lobby window.

Red’s Hot Cowboy is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

Well, now Wil is one hot cowboy. Check the cover at this time! And because Pearl has red hair, he keeps calling her Red which makes her angry.

Excerpt time:
The cowboy took two steps and pushed through the swinging doors at the end of the counter. “All I want is a room, Red.”
“You call me Red again, Mister, and you won’t need one. What you’ll need is a pine box and a preacher to read about you lyin’ down in green pastures,” she said.

(love it! KW)

What made you decide to write in this genre?

Red’s Hot Cowboy is my ninth cowboy book. Even when I was writing sweet romance my stories tended to lean toward ranching, cowboys and country life.

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

I don’t think I’m either one. I start out with an outline but it doesn’t usually last long. Somehow my characters decide that they are going to tell me what to write instead of me telling them what to do. It’s so much more fun to let them lead me through the plot and the adventures are so awesome that I don’t argue.

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

I had already done some massive research for Love Drunk Cowboy and Henrietta is only a few miles from there. It’s on the Texas side of the Red River and Terral (Love Drunk Cowboy) is on the Oklahoma side. The next book is set in Ringgold which is between the two towns. This one required a bit of research about just how many shots a body could stand before passing plumb out! LOL

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

Pearl was Austin’s friend (Love Drunk Cowboy) and from the very beginning of the series, she insisted I tell her story. I’m not going to argue with a red head that’s got a temper like hers.

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

I really liked Pearl. She and I bonded over this book. But then Lucy stole my heart as a secondary character. She grew from a battered woman who was afraid of her shadow into a confident lady. In the next couple of books she gets even spicier.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

None of the above. My characters come to me full grown with all the baggage of life’s experiences. Together we unfold the story. It’s like meeting a person in a coffee shop, striking up a conversation and becoming friends. The information about their past, their hopes, their fears all comes about with the passage of time and friendship.

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

In one way or another I think every author I have read or am reading inspires me. I learn something new with every book.

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Word of mouth is the greatest. I love it when someone drops me a note and says, “my neighbor told me I just had to read your books and now I’m hooked.” That’s simply great! But blog tours are pretty effective also. I’ve gotten lots of wonderful feedback from my blog tours (Thank you, MCTT!!!!)

What do we have to look forward next?

Next up is Darn Good Cowboy Christmas (October) which is Raylen and Liz’s story; One Hot Cowboy Wedding (Jasmine and Ace’s); and then there will be a Christmas book in 2012 which is Gemma’s story. After that Dewar will get his turn; and then Creed (Ace’s younger brother who can’t seem to find a HEA). From there we’ll see what happens next!

Thanks, Carolyn!

And again, I thank y’all for inviting me to come for some therapy today. Happy reading everyone!

To celebrate her book release, Carolyn is offering a free copy of Red’s Hot Cowboy to two lucky folks who comment on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

She will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Bio.
Check out author’s website at www.carolynlbrown.com

Carolyn is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller and Red’s Hot Cowboy is her 52nd published book. She’s been writing for fourteen years and now writes full time. She and her retired English teacher husband live in southern Oklahoma. They have three grown children and too many grandchildren to list!

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us again at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

Good morning everyone! I’m smack in the middle of my blog tour for Love Drunk Cowboy and I’m so glad to have a moment to catch my breath and enjoy a little chocolate therapy. And this is some almighty fine chocolate, too! Smooth and very tasty. Yes ma’am, I do believe I will indulge in just one more. You did say that it is formulated special for cowboy romance writers and has no calories or fat grams, didn’t you? Well, in that case, maybe two more would keep me going to the next stop on the tour.

Coming right up! There. Now it's tme for a few questions. I understand you have a new release out called Love Drunk Cowboy. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Austin Lanier has inherited a watermelon farm from her grandmother right on the Red River and is wasting her two week vacation to straighten up her grandmother’s affairs and put the farm up for sale. Tall, blond and sexy, she has no desire to get her hands dirty planting and harvesting watermelons or to live in Terral, population 386―until she finds the wine cellar and the recipes, and she finds out that Rye O’Donnell isn’t a seventy year old friend of her grandmother. He’s a flesh and blood, hot and sexy 32 year old cowboy who makes sets her hormones to tingling. Rye didn’t figure on Austin leaving her big city life and he damn sure didn’t plan on losing his heart after that night they’d sampled too much of Granny Lanier’s watermelon wine. Austin didn’t plan on falling for a tall dark haired cowboy with spurs on his boots and a gleam in his eye when he looked at her. With a brand new cast of quirky characters and a whole new small town world, Love Drunk Cowboy kicks of the new SPIKES & SPURS series about women who give up their spike high heels for cowboy boots and the cowboys who find out taming them is a helluva lot harder than it looks.

Love Drunk Cowboy is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

I didn’t! I had another title in mind and my fabulous editor, Deb Werksman, called me to say that she thought this one would work better. I fell in love with it the minute I heard it because it fit the book so well.

What made you decide to write in this genre?

I don’t think I decided to write in this genre. I think this genre decided I would write in it. This is my eighth book in the western/cowboy romance genre and I’m glad to say there are more on the way! I’ve written in historical, contemporary and now western and I love it all, but this seems to be my niche.

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

I’ve been asked this question many times. The only way I can describe it is to say that I’m neither. I try very hard to be a plotter because I’m an organized person but alas, it doesn’t work that way. I plot and plot but my books only follow that business for a couple of chapters. The easiest way for me to explain it is this: I plot (that’s like flying a jet airplane: lots of things to remember, scheduling, etc.), then I fill my plane with all kinds of wonderful characters and since I’m the writer and I’ve got the book plotted, I get to be the pilot, right? Okay, everything is on time, following a schedule and then, boom!! The characters hijack the plane and off we go on an amazing adventure that is very, very different than what I had planned in the beginning!

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

I had to learn how to make watermelon wine for this book…very tasty! I use a multitude of research sites and books. Internet is wonderful but I still read books and I’ve even found Amazon is a good site if I need to see what a certain instrument is in wine making!

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

Back when my youngest started kindergarten, my husband took on a principal/English teacher job in a little bitty town on the Red River called Terral. We spent a year in watermelon country and I’ve always wanted to set a book in that area. My editor, Deb, gave me the opportunity to write a whole series set along the Red. Love Drunk Cowboy is over the line into Oklahoma but the next three are across the River in the small town of Ringgold, Texas.

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

Austin was fun to get to know. She kept me on my toes. She’s a smart, savvy woman used to running a department in a huge oil firm and now she’s planting watermelons and making wine. She could have her choice of any bachelor in Tulsa, Oklahoma but her heart wants a swaggerin’ cowboy with a Texas drawl. Oh, yes, she was fun to write about but let me tell you, she insisted that the story be told just the way it happened. She made me tell it the way it was and didn’t even let me dress it up when she fell out of bed at a terrible moment! Oops! No more or you’ll be saying I spoiled the scene.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

I’m not so sure I develop characters. They come to me with all their faults and quirky attitudes and I simply write what they tell me. It’s a bit like watching a movie and taking notes the whole time. I see the whole scene, the whole book in my head. Then it’s just getting the right words from brain to paper so my readers can see it the way I do.

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

Oh, yes! My Sourcebook sisters who write westerns are a constant inspiration. Hello, C. H. Admirand and Joanne Kennedy! And then there’s LaVyrle Spencer (we had a wake when she retired and I mourned for years. Please write one more, LaVyrle!) and of course Louis L’Amour and then there’s Carl Hiaason and Randy Wayne White. Did I mention I’m a very eclectic reader?

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

I think blogging is a wonderful, wonderful avenue for promotion. Readers love to read about upcoming or just-out books. They like to ask questions and they like to know the general jest of the story. Blogs take them to that place. I also do press releases, talk to librarians when I travel, sign in-stock books at any book store I pass and speak at book clubs, women’s clubs, etc.

What do we have to look forward next?

The Spikes & Spurs series has at least three more books lined up in it. Red’s Hot Cowboy will be out in September and Darn Good Cowboy Christmas in October. Then another one will follow in the spring of 2012 which hasn’t been titled yet…but it involves a secret marriage that takes place in Vegas. What goes on in Vegas stays in Vegas…until it is broadcast on national television!

Thanks, Carolyn Brown!

Thank you for inviting me to stop by today. I’ll just have one more chocolate and then I’m off to visit with Sugarbeat’s Books on the 24th. I’ll be checkin’ on the blog throughout the day so talk to me. Ask questions or let me hear if you’ve read one of my past books! Have a chocolate and sit a spell!

To celebrate her book release, Carolyn is offering two copies of Love Drunk Cowboy; one to each of two lucky folks who comment on today's blog. US and Canada only please! (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

Check out author’s website at http://www.carolynlbrown.com/index.html

Buy http://www.amazon.com/Love-Drunk-Cowboy-Carolyn-Brown/dp/1402253583/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1305651085&sr=1-1.

Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us again at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

Okay I’m settled down into this comfortable chair and there’s chocolate on my fingers. Wait a minute while I lick it off and we’ll get started. This is some seriously good chocolate. I wouldn’t want to be guilty of wasting a single slurp of it! Okay, I’m ready. First question?

I understand you have a new release out called Honky Tonk Christmas. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Oh, yes, I can talk about Honky Tonk Christmas all day. When I started writing the Honky Tonk Series, it was a trilogy, but then Sharlene started pitching a hissy fit to have her own book so it became a series. She had so much to tell and even more to overcome. The Army does not train women to be snipers but she had an aptitude and she worked black ops during two tours in Iraq. She brought home nightmares that refused to go away. Then she moved to Mingus and loved her busy life at the Honky Tonk. But it did not erase the nightmares. Nothing did but sleeping in Holt Jackson’s arms. And nothing could ever happen with Holt. He’s raising a set of twins since his sister died and Waylon and Judd keep him too busy to think about the spicy little red head who owns the Honky Tonk. Besides she’s his boss since he’s working for her adding an addition to the Honky Tonk. And Sharlene is determined to never let the Honky Tonk charm/curse affect her life. Somehow their hearts didn’t get the message, though and kept throwing speed bumps in their journey to the HEA!

Honky Tonk Christmas is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

It fit so well with the storyline. Sharlene wants the Honky Tonk addition finished by Christmas since she’s invited all the past owners and quirky characters back to Mingus for a big Christmas party. Alan Jackson sings the song on the juke box in the Honky Tonk so that made it even more special. And who can resist kissing a cowboy that looks like Holt Jackson under the mistletoe?

What made you decide to write in this genre?

I love westerns. Movies and books. From “Big Valley” to the modern day, “Justified.” From Louis L’Amour’s Sackett series to Joanne Kennedy’s Cowboy Trouble. Western is my love and it’s easy to write about what you love!

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

I’ve been asked this question many times. My best answer is that I’m neither. I plot and plot and then the characters take over and we go on amazing adventures. Put me into the pilot’s seat in an airplane and fill it with quirky characters. We’ll stay the course for a couple of chapters and then the heroine hijacks the plane and we’re off on a whole new route. I probably wouldn’t have taken that road but oh, my, it’s simply great and my readers like it so much better than the plans I had!

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

I’d already done research for the whole Honky Tonk Series so I knew the Honky Tonk and Mingus and even the Bahama Mama house that’s painted pink, turquoise and yellow with orange rockers on the front porch. But I did have to do some serious research about snipers. I could almost crawl into those nightmares with Sharlene.

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

Like I said, it started out as a trilogy. But Sharlene played such a strong part in My Give A Damn’s Busted that I really wanted to write her story. Then my agent called and said my fabulous editor, Deb Werksman, wanted a fourth book. I didn’t even hesitate when I agreed!

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

I loved all my characters in Honky Tonk Christmas, from the country music artists on the juke boxes to the hero, Holt Jackson, the heroine, Sharlene Jackson, her grandfather, her mother and the Honky Tonk patrons. But one of my favorites had to be Judd, Holt’s seven year old niece. She stole my heart! Bless her heart, she had a terrible time trying to keep from cussin’.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

My characters are so real to me that I don’t need character sheets or things like that. I do keep a recipe box with an index card on each character including secondary characters so I don’t forget eye color, hair color and specific scars or tattoos.

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

How much room do we have for this interview? There are so many that have been an inspiration to me, who’ve helped me along the highway the past years. I’m an eclectic reader who likes romance, mystery and everything in-between. I love Nora Roberts, LaVyrle Spencer, Carl Hiaason, James Lee Burke, Sue Grafton, Margaret Mitchell, Leon Uris … I told you I was eclectic!

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Word of mouth. If people love what they read they’ll stand on the top of the water tower and shout it out to everyone in town. They’ll tell their neighbor across the back yard fence and the waitress down at the local burger joint. They’ll whoop and holler and dance out of the library when a new book by that author comes out. I love getting a note from a reader I’ve never met who says that she heard about me from a friend and she can’t wait to go to the grocery store and tell everyone how much she loves my book!

What do we have to look forward next?

Spikes & Spurs starts in May, 2011 with Love Drunk Cowboy. It’s a series set on the Red River about women who give up their high heel shoes and high profile jobs for cowboy boots but they keep their kick-ass independence. And about those cowboys who find taming the women is tougher than hanging onto the back of a bucking bull for eight seconds.

Thanks, Carolyn!

Thanks goes to Much Cheaper Than Therapy for letting me stop by here today! Chocolate was wonderful. I’m leaving feelin’ like a queen with a diamond crown because I got to talk about my new release, Honky Tonk Christmas! But before I go, does anyone have any more questions?

To celebrate her book release, Carolyn is offering a free signed book of Honky Tonk Christmas to one lucky commenter on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see ifyou won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.) Good luck everyone and I hope whoever wins a copy loves it!

Carolyn will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Bio. Check out author’s website at www.carolynlbrown.com. Buy Honky Tonk Christmas at Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Hastings or your favorite book stores!

Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy again, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

I've got chocolate, coffee and I'm settled down in a lounge chair. It's great to stop by MCTT today for another therapy session. (You're always welcome here, my dear.)


I understand you have a new release out called My Give A Damn's Busted. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

This is the third book in the Honky Tonk Series. I Love This Bar came out in June; Hell, Yeah in August. The series finale will be out in November with Honky Tonk Christmas. My Give A Damn's Busted is Larissa and Hank's story. Larissa was fed up with trying to find a place to call home. She'd been around the world and no where called her name so one day she decided to let fate have a chance at bringing her happiness. She pulled the map down in the library and stuck a pin in it. The pin came to rest in Mingus, Texas. When she traveled to the Texas town she thought she'd made a wrong turn and landed in hell. But things began to work out for her and by the end of Hell, Yeah she is the new owner of the Honky Tonk. In My Give A Damn's Busted, Hayes Radner is still trying to get the Honky Tonk. And Larissa is just the sassy woman to fight him off. Then Hank Wells shows up and thinks he can dig up dirt on Larissa bu tshe's not going down without a fight. No dime store cowboy can get the best of her or her Honky Tonk. As secrets emerge between the two and passion vies with ulterior motives, its a toss up as to whether they'll learn to trust each other or not.

My Give A Damn's Busted is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

My fabulous editor, Deb Werksman at Sourcebooks, and I worked together on the titles but she gets the most credit for them. My Give A Damn's Busted is also the title of a Jo Dee Messina and plays a big part all through the book.

What made you decide to write in this genre?

Westerns have always been a favorite of mine whether books, movies or television shows. I love cowboys! They talk slow, walk tall and listen when a woman talks. It don't get no better than that!

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

I think more like a jet air plane pilot than a plotter or a panster. I start off with a destination and a plane full of characters. But about half way to the destination I let the characters hijack the plane and we have this amazing journey that wasn't planned at all.

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

Of course, I use the internet to research but my favorite research tool is simply going to the real site and taking a look. I went to Mingus several times during the course of writing the series. Nice bunch of folks down there. If you are ever in the area go by the Smokestack and have a chicken fried steak. They're the best ever!

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

Well, Larissa had made herself known in Hell, Yeah and showed me she had enough spunk and sass to inherit the place. That rascal Hank Wells...there was something he knew that I didn't and I sure had to keep at him to ferret it all out. So My Give A Damn's Busted just fell into place.

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

Oh, dear, that would be like choosing a favorite child! I loved the way Larissa came to life in My Give A Damn's Busted. She showed them all that she had spunk, class and independence. But then I liked Hank and his dilemma and the way his deception lay heavy on his heart. And then Merle, the seventy year old pool shark who's been in all the Honky Tonk books. And Luther, the bouncer, who's just a big old sweet bear of a man.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

I just toss them in the airplane, tell them to sit anywhere they want and see what happens!

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

Oh, my, yes, ma'am!! I can't even name them all. If I had to narrow it down to only a few they would be Margaret Mitchell, Mario Puza, Leon Uris and Nora Lofts. That's a bit eclectic but I'll read any and every thing from Hemingway to the back of the Cheerio's box and love it all.

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Word of mouth, first and foremost. If someone falls in love with a book they are going to tell their neighbors and anyone who'll stand still and listen. Also, blog sites. It's amazing to me how many people visit blog sites to see the reviews before they read a book. So hats off to all you folks who take care of those sites.

What do we have to look forward next?

Honky Tonk Christmas, the fourth and final installment of The Honky Tonk series will be on the shelves in November, just in time for Christmas. In February, From Wine to Water, a sweet romance from Avalon will kick off the Angels and Outlaws trilogy and then in May, a new series begins from Sourcebooks: Spikes & Spurs with the first book, Love Drunk Cowboy.

Thanks, Carolyn!

Thank you for inviting me to make a stop here to promote My Give A Damn's Busted. I hate to get out of the comfortable chair but my coffee and chocolate is gone so I guess it's time for me to move on and give my seat to the next writer! Happy Reading. (We'll make sure to get you some more chocolate for the next time you visit)

To celebrate her book release, Carolyn Brown is offering a free signed book of My Give A Damn's Busted to one lucky commenter on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

She will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Check out author’s website at http://carolynlbrown.com/

Buy http://www.amazon.com/Give-Damns-Busted-Carolyn-Brown/dp/1402239289/ref=sr_1_2?s=gateway&ie=UTF8&qid=1285862218&sr=8-2

Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

Thank you for letting me stop here at Much Cheaper Than Therapy and catch my breath before taking off tomorrow morning to Oklahoma City to the Full Circle Book Store to sign books all afternoon. The lounge chair is comfortable and the chocolate wonderful. Y'all are a great bunch of gals! (Have a safe trip!)


I understand you have a new release out called Hell, Yeah. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Hell, Yeah is the spicy second book of hot new The Honky Tonk series. Cathy O’Dell and Travis Henry cause the sparks to fly and the fire to burn hotter’n than a hooker on the front seat of a holiness tent revival in Hell, Yeah.

It all starts on New Year’s Eve when the count down begins in the Honky Tonk. Gretchen Wilson is singing “Redneck Woman,” and every lusty woman in the beer joint is yelling, “Hell yeah!” with each number as they count down the last ten seconds to the New Year.

Gretchen Wilson asked the redneck girls to give her a big hell yeah and everyone got in on the fun even Cathy O’Dell, owner and bartender. That is until she looked up to see a man making a bee line for her. At first she thought he was an old flame from high school but the closer he got and the smaller the numbers got, the more she realized he was a hell of a lot sexier than that man had ever been. His blue eyes locked with hers and when everyone yelled “Happy New Year’s” he stopped. His toes were touching hers and the heat from his cowboy boots was enough to burn though the leather to her feet. The kiss came close to setting the Honky Tonk on fire, but even blue blazes weren’t as hot as Cathy’s lips were when it ended.

Travis Henry is a petroleum engineer from western Arkansas ─ a hunky, sexy cowboy without an impulsive bone in his body. But he didn’t have anyone to kiss on New Year’s and neither did the tall blond looking wistful in the middle of the dance floor. He’d always been drawn to tall blond women and she was a damn fine specimen so he kissed her. It was supposed to be one kiss not the beginning of a hot relationship with more ups and downs than a roller coaster.

Cathy had come out of a bad relationship a few months before inheriting the beer joint and she didn’t trust men in general. But most of all she didn’t trust herself to choose a decent man, not after her failure with Brad Alton. That, plus she’s put down deep unshakable roots deep in the Honky Tonk.

Travis is a wanderer with his next flight already in sight. When he finishes the Mingus oil job, he’s off to his dream job in Alaska. Wings like his and roots like Cathy’s did not mix, even if their hearts tried to shake the roots and clip the wings. Or do they?

Hell, Yeah is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

Actually, it was a joint effort between me and my editor, Deb Werksman. I had something different in mind for book two and she came up with Hell, Yeah and I absolutely loved it. It was so much better than what I'd come up with. So much better in fact that I've forgotten what I did have in mind!

What made you decide to write in this genre?

I love cowboys! Love western movies. Love western books. They are so down to earth and real.

Are you a plotter or a pantser and how did it affect the writing of this book?

I'm a bit of both. I plot and plot! Go to sleep at night with the plot in my head and wake up in the morning with it. Then the characters take over and boom! The plot goes out the window and they tell me what happened and insist on the story line being one hundred percent guaran-damn-teed right and I become a panster!

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book? What are your favorite research books or sites?

The internet is a vast source of research but I like to visit the places I'm writing about and get a feel for the place and people. For this series I was in Mingus several times and down at Morgan Mill to the feed store/restaurant/gas station a couple of times. Folks down in that part of Texas are right friendly. Stop in and have a cup of coffee with them. They'll tell you great stories.

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

Well, Cathy was at the Honky Tonk already when I Love This Bar ended. It seemed only right that she pick up the reins, put on her cowboy hat and boots and run the place. Travis was on his way to the area but no one knew it just yet so they were bound to clash when he got there. And boy did they ever!

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

There are so many quirky characters in the Honky Tonk Series, it would be difficult to choose just one. I love Tinker, the bouncer, and Merle, the seventy plus year old pool shark, and of course Cathy with all her complexities and Travis with his determination. And Jezzy with her free thinking, flower child attitude. They all have their own personalities and quirks and make me laugh.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

I'm not so sure I develop characters. I think basically I get to know them in depth as I write the story. It's usually on a need-to-know basis. They sit on my shoulder or on the futon behind my computers and tell me what I need to know to write that day. Then the next day I get more of what I need to know to get through the next scene.

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

How many pages to do you have for this interview!? So many authors have inspired me. Leon Uris, LaVyrle Spencer, Harry Kemelman, Nora Roberts, Mario Puzo, Sue Grafton, Margaret Mitchell and the eclectic list could go on for several pages. I've always loved reading! It's the most wonderful escape in the whole world.

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Blogs are very good promotion. Word of mouth is wonderful. If someone reads my book and tells a neighbor and the neighbor tells two people, pretty soon the word gets around. I always give a copy of my book to the local library and to the one in the town where I grew up and graduated from high school. The later might be an ego trip to show those who voted for me as the girl most likely NOT to succeed! LOL

What do we have to look forward next?

Two more in the Honky Tonk series. My Give A Damn's Busted will be out in October and Honky Tonk Christmas in November. So hang on to your hat. Keep your boots on and the beer cold!

I'm working on another series for Sourcebooks which will be published in 2011. Cowboys again! So get ready to ride again in May of 2011.

Thanks, Carolyn!

Thank y'all. It's been delightful to sit a spell and visit about Hell, Yeah. Here's hoping you can't put it down once you start reading it and want to come back for another dose of Honky Tonk good times in October with My Give A Damn's Busted.

To celebrate her book release, Hell, Yeah, Carolyn is offering a signed copy of Hell, Yeah to one lucky commenter on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

She will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Carolyn Brown lives in southern Oklahoma with her retired English teacher husband, Charles. They have three grown children and enough grandchildren to keep them young forever. An award winning author, she has sold 55 books. They have been published in nine foreign languages, large print and in the near future two of them will appear in Japanese Manga. They have been reviewed in multiple publications including Romantic Times, Romance Review Today, Library Journal, Affaire de Coeur and Booklist. I Love This Bar and Hell, Yeah are also featured in the August edition of County Music People magazine.

Check out author’s website at http://www.carolynlbrown.com/

Read an excerpt and buy at AMAZON.

Interview with Carolyn Brown

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Carolyn Brown. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.


I understand you have a new release out called I Love This Bar. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?


Yes, ma'am, but first thank you so much for letting me make a stop today on my blog tour. I'm excited to be here at Much Cheaper Than Therapy to talk about I Love This Bar. It's the first book in the Honky Tonk Series, each featuring the name of a hot country western song and set in the Honky Tonk, a beer joint in Mingus, Texas. The Honky Tonk is the center of night life and the gathering place for every thirsty rancher and lusty lady in the area looking for a good time. Daisy O'Dell is the bartender and owner of the Honky Tonk in I Love This Bar. She's vowed the only way she'll leave the beer joint is feet first with her cold dead fingers wrapped around a bottle of Coors. Jarod McElroy came into the Honky Tonk looking for a cold beer and a little peace from his meddling great-uncle. He got the beer but there was no peace. From the first time he met Daisy with her hot looks and smart mouth his life was in a turmoil and his heart on an emotional roller coaster.

I Love This Bar is a very interesting title. How did you arrive at that name?

My editor, Deb Werksman, wanted the books to have hot country songs for titles and I agreed. I Love This Bar is a Toby Keith country western song that fit the book very well. Also it describes the conflict between Daisy and Jarod. She loves the beer joint and has no intentions of leaving it with it's bikers, hookers, preppies and cowboys. Jarod has quite a job convincing her to come out from behind that bar and come home with him.

What made you decide to write in this genre?

Writing about cowboys and ranching is my niche. I really think that cowboys isn't just a reading trend but they are here to stay. What true blooded woman couldn't look at Jarod on the cover of I Love This Bar and not want to find a pair of cowboy boots and go two-stepping?

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

From an old beer joint in Ratliff City, Oklahoma called Ma Honey's. It's long since gone and I never got around to visiting it. But my husband's friend, Drig, lived with us during our ultra poor college days and he used to go there on the weekends and entertain me for hours with the stories.

What are your favorite research books and why?

I love the computer for research, whether for historical or contemporary. I do have a few books lying about that I rely on but most of it comes from either visiting the place, talking to real people or the computer. In I Love This Bar Daisy is also a vet tech and does some vet work on the side so I had to do some research to find out how to treat bloated goats ... silly things ate too much!

Which character did you like writing about the most, and why?

Oh, my! That's too tough a question to answer with one name. Let me introduce you to a few: Merle, the seventy year old pool shark with ratted sky high dyed black hair. Chigger, the tall blonde who can't be a hooker because she says sex is too much fun to charge for it. Amos, the older oil baron who wears black leather and rides with a Harley motorcycle gang. The red haired Walker triplets: Jim Bob, Joe Bob and Billy Bob. Then there's Uncle Emmett who uses his Alzhiemer's and makes Jarod and Daisy pretend they are married just to keep him happy. They were all hoots to write about and each played a part in getting Jarod and Daisy over the obstacles keeping them apart.

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research affect your character development?

I'm not sure I develop characters. They take up abode in my office and tell me what to write. They are voices in my head and if I don't get it right they plague me until I do. They come to me with all their baggage and background and I just have to figure out a way to get it on paper.

Do you have any authors that inspired you?

How much room do you have for this interview? It might take a while to list all the authors who have inspired me. I've been reading since I figured out that books were so much fun. So I'll only mention a few: Margaret Mitchell, LaVyrle Spencer, Carl Hiaason, Randy Wayne White, Leon Uris, Nora Roberts and well, the list goes on and on and is very eclectic since I read a broad range of genres.

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Blog tours create a lot of excitement. I also do press releases for newspapers, both local and those where my stories are set. This past week I sent out free bookmarks to libraries in the towns where the books were set. And I keep current pictures and reviews on my website!

What do we have to look forward next?

Well, if you loved I Love This Bar and hated to see it end, remember there are three more! Hell, Yeah (August), My Give A Damn's Busted (October) and Honky Tonk Christmas (November). Plus I'm working on a new series which will debut in the spring of 2011 called the Spikes & Spurs series.

Thanks, Carolyn!

And thanks to you folks here at Much Cheaper Than Therapy ... it's been fun stopping by and resting in a lounge chair with a nice big cup of coffee and some chocolate! After looking at the front cover of I Love This Bar, tell me, what would make you come out from behind that bar and go home with Jarod McElroy? (in a heartbeat! KW)

To celebrate her book release, Carolyn Brown is offering a free signed copy of I Love This Bar to one lucky commenter on today's blog. (please check the blog Monday night to see if you won. Chances of winning determined by the number of entries.)

She will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...

Bio.
Carolyn Brown, an award-winning author who has more than 40 romance novels both historical and contemporary, credits her eclectic family for her humor and writing ideas. She was born in Texas but grew up in southern Oklahoma where she and her husband, Charles, a retired English teacher, now make their home in the town of Davis, Oklahoma. They have three grown children and enough grandchildren to keep them young.

Check out author’s website at http://carolynlbrown.com/