BUTTERMAN (TIME) TRAVEL, INC and INDUCTION DAY by PK Hrezo

After collaborating with her on Operation Awesome, I was excited to finally meet PK Hrezo at UTopYAcon back in June. And when I found out about her Butterman Time Travel Inc. series, I knew I had to feature it:

Welcome to Butterman Travel, Incorporated; a full service agency designed to meet all your exclusive time travel needs. We're a family owned and operated business with one hundred years of experience. A place where you can rest assured, safety and reliability always come first. Anxious to attend some special event from the past? Or for a glimpse of what the future holds? You've come to the right place. We're a fully accredited operation, offering an array of services; including, but not limited to: customized travel plans, professionally piloted operations, and personal trip guides. *Terms and conditions do apply. Use our Web conferencing to contact our frontline reservation specialist, Bianca Butterman, who will handle all your inquiries in a professional and efficient manner, offering a tentative itinerary and free fare quote, so you can make the most of your time trip. We look forward to serving you at Butterman Travel, Inc., where time is always in your hands.

Book One: BUTTERMAN (TIME) TRAVEL, INC.

It’s the year 2069 and even though eighteen-year-old Bianca Butterman is heir to the family biz, she may never see the day her time-craft license becomes official. When a government agent starts nosing around the operation, Butterman Travel, Inc. gets stuck with a full audit—part of a government take-over scheme to shut down all private time travel agencies. Enter former boy band superstar, Tristan Helms, desperate to retrieve a lost item from his past and willing to pay triple fare for a time-trip to get there, and Bianca has to find a way to complete the job and return home before the government gets wind and shuts down the family biz for good.




Book Two: INDUCTION DAY

The year 2069 is coming to a close, and eighteen-year-old Bianca Butterman's time-craft license is finally official. She's ready for the Induction Day she's waited for since she was a kid-the one that will secure her name on the Butterman family tree of time travelers. But ever since the media discovered Bianca is pop superstar Tristan Helms' latest new honey, everything Bianca does or says becomes a target of criticism. Having her professional credibility topping the gossip sites across social media is an open invitation for the government to step in and regulate Bianca's Induction. Now she will have to ask herself if saving 1500 people from drowning is worth losing everything she's ever worked for, including the Butterman family biz.



PK also answered some interview questions:

In addition to writing speculative fiction, you craft pixie ornaments called PK's Pixies. In what ways, if any, do these different art forms inform one another, and what do you like most about each?

I get creative fulfillment from both, but each are so different from one another. Writing requires lots of sitting still and thinking. Crafting lets me move around, work with my hands, and work with tangible colors and textures. Yet they both filter into the other. Taking a break from writing so I can craft opens up my creative vein even more which leads me to story revelations and epiphanies because I'm letting it simmer in the back of my head while I craft. I think sometimes we try to force the stories out, when what they need is time to breathe in between.

So true--must be why writing ideas (and solutions) come to me after I allow myself some mind space. How has the Butterman series grown over time, and in what ways has it informed your writing process?

I wrote the first three volumes fast, and I never expected it to go beyond book 1 when I wrote it. I realized I needed to give Bianca her induction day since it's such a big part of who she is, so I knew if I didn't write book 2, Induction Day, I'd be missing out on really developing her character. I plotted out ID, then got the idea to write a prequel of Bianca's earlier years in diary format and put it up on Wattpad as I went. It gained a large following and was featured there for a few weeks. I ended up with a 30K word novella afterward, and later published it on its own. Writing Diary of a Teenage Time Traveler BEFORE writing Induction Day was huge in so many ways. For one, it slowed me down, and although I hated that, it ended up giving me so much insight into Bianca's character. I knew her inside out by the time I was ready to take on the sequel.

I highly recommend that process for anyone hoping to better their character development. Write a journal in whatever character's point of view you want to get inside the head of and don't force any rules, just write, considering what wounds your character may have that helped developed the way they are and the goals they seek to achieve.

I'll definitely give that a try--especially since character development is something I'd like to improve on. You also have an email list. How have you found this useful in reaching readers, and what would you recommend to authors wanting to start an email newsletter?

I took a marketing class after indie publishing and the biggest take away from it was having that newsletter and adding to it. It differs from all of social media because it guarantees your readers see it (as long as they open the email) whereas social media platforms tend to pick and choose newsworthy info. If you treat your newsletter readers like loyal fans, they'll continue to support your work.

I recommend starting an email and growing it organically. Don't worry about having contests and other gimmicks to get people to sign up for it. You want REAL fans who really are interested in your work, or else you have an email list of people who don't care and unsubscribe anyway. I also recommend sticking to the AIDA concept with your newsletter content.

AIDA is Attention, Interesting, Desire, Action

Get your reader's attention with interesting content and create a desire in them to take action.

I think I need to tack that to my wall! What are some of your current projects?

I've been wrapped up in a narrative nonfiction project for awhile now. It's for a local mom of a victim of a brutal crime, and it's been a heavy project, but it's also developed my writing skills well beyond what they've ever been. Emotion is an enormous element in crafting a story that grips readers, and this story is teeming with emotion. It's really helped me learn how to better convey it, and how to move my reader with ups and downs of real life suspense and heartache and joy.

I'm also just finishing up a contemporary commercial fiction project that I hope to go on submission with in the fall. Here's the tagline for it:

Former fatty finds more than a romance with the plaza handyman when she takes on her health guru's challenge of facing temptation by working in a beachside upscale cupcakery all summer.

Great tagline! 

All books in the Butterman series, as well as PK's other books can be found on her Amazon.com author page.

And to find out more about PK herself, click the below links:

PK Hrezo

 ~Author and Artist~

            

* Follow Me Down the Rabbit Hole *  

     NEWSLETTER ~ WEBSITE  

HOUR OF MISCHIEF by Aimee Hyndman

Welcome to August! I'm settling into my new job as Youth Services Selector, and was pleasantly surprised to learn that my new library was recently featured on Buzzfeed! I'm so proud to be a part of such an amazing group of collaborators.

On to our August authors! First up is Aimee Hyndman. Aimee and I met when we collaborated on Operation Awesome, and when HOUR OF MISCHIEF found a publisher, I knew I had to feature it.

From Goodreads:

Born in a whorehouse in the slums of Fortuna and burdened with a prosthetic arm, seventeen-year-old JANET REDSTONE doesn’t think she owes the Clockwork Gods anything—which is why she makes a living stealing from their temples. But when she lands her team in prison, making a pact with the God of Mischief, ITAZURA, is the only way to right her wrongs and free her friends.

Janet doesn’t trust Itazura as far as she can punch him, but with her soul in his hands, she has no choice but to do what he says. The clockwork gods and the bad-tempered elder gods of the ancient past are locked in a game of cat and mouse and the human realms are caught in the middle. If Janet can’t somehow convince the gods to step in a save the world, humanity is in an abyss of trouble.

Using her unconventional wits, an impressive tolerance to alcohol, and a strong right hook, Janet has to convince the gods that humanity is worth saving. Unfortunately, it’s a lot more difficult to stop an apocalypse when you’re slowly being driven crazy by the Lord of Mischief, especially when he starts growing on you.

Aimee also answered some interview questions!

According to your bio, you are currently attaining a double-major in Creative Writing and English. What led to this decision, and can you tell us more about your journey toward publication?

I've always loved writing since before I could write actual words. I loved to invent stories with my stuffed animals, usually with dramatic, tragic plots. So I think I always knew I wanted to major in creative writing and since I also love to read, English was an obvious supplement.

I started my journey toward publication back in high school when I queried my first novel which didn't get much attention. I wrote HOUR OF MISCHIEF my senior year of high school and one year later decided to start querying it on sort of a whim when I saw #pitmad happening on twitter. A few months and several email mishaps later, I got the call from the amazing Laura Zats. I signed with her that February and we began to work toward getting the MS into submission shape. Then that next fall she called me again to tell me about the offer from Curiosity Quills Press. I don't think I responded coherently. In fact, the words 'are you serious' were probably used at least five times.

And now we're only a couple months away from publication. It's all happened so fast. It's kind of crazy but I'm SO excited to have gotten to this point.

And we're excited for you! I love the premise of HOUR OF MISCHIEF. How did the idea come to you, and what do you want readers to take away from the story?

The idea for HOUR OF MISCHIEF came to me during my final year at Shared Worlds, a fantasy based writing camp for teens. We were split into world building groups and had to create worlds from scratch. On the very first day, a thought occurred to me: Thief teams up with the God of Mischief to save the world. And it stuck like glue. I wrote that idea as my final short story for camp but 8,000 words was nowhere near enough to tell the story like I wanted to. To me, HOUR OF MISCHIEF is fun even though it deals with some weightier topics. For the first book at least, I wanted the more serious themes to blend well with the humor. There's an overarching theme and message to the series I think, but it's not as prevalent in book one. More than anything, I want the reader to have fun and feel something as they're reading the book. I want them to laugh and panic with the characters. Because the books I attached to hardest were the ones that make me feel something.

Shared Worlds sounds fantastic! (Here's a link for those interested in finding out more about it.) And Janet Redstone, your main character, will definitely resonate with readers. If you could have lunch with Janet, where would you go (and what would you have for lunch)?

I think I would take Janet to a nice burger joint. She strikes me as someone who likes greasy food. She would order too much for her stomach but she hates wasting food so she would eat it all and get sick.

Poor Janet! What are some of your current projects? Will HOUR OF MISCHIEF have a sequel?

HOUR OF MISCHIEF is the first book in a four book series. I recently finished editing book 2, currently titled SEASON OF WIND. As for other projects, I'm working on rewriting my first ever novel (it needs some major improvements). I'm also working on a collaborative Urban Fantasy project with some friends. It’s a pretty massive endeavor so it will be awhile before that is finished!

Sounds like you'll have your hands full! Thanks again for such a great interview.

To pre-order HOUR OF MISCHIEF on Amazon, feel free to click the icon below:

Going dark in July...

Hi, all. So. Here's the deal. I just accepted a new job as Youth Services Selector for the Sacramento Public Library. There are many good things about this decision, but the best part is that my blog content here will finally match up with my library job! Woo hoo!

Of course, this will translate to a lot of busy--resigning old position, moving from current house, finding a new place to live, etc. So, for my sanity (and yours too) I am going to unplug from this blog during the rest of July. But definitely stay tuned for more interviews in August--I met TONS of amazing people at BEA, UTopYAcon, and ALA, and I can't wait to share all their new and wonderful books with you.

So, adieu for now! See you in August.

THE COWBOY ROCK STAR by K.C. Klein

I met K.C. Klein through Erin Kellison, who I featured last week. I've also featured K.C. here and here. She has a brand new book out, THE COWBOY ROCK STAR, first in the Somewhere, TX series. Have a look!

Everyone loves a rock star.
What country legend Brent Kane needs is a good old fashioned hook-up. With pressure to write his next album mounting and the sales from his latest album teetering, Brent needs to find his muse –hot sex with no commitment—fast. So when Brent holes up at his best friend’s ranch in Somewhere Texas to write his next single the last thing he expected was to find his muse in the form of his best friend’s little sister.

DJ Diaz, the nonsense part owner of the Double D Ranch, is not at all affected by Brent’s good looks and play boy charm. She’s fallen once before and learned firsthand the heartache of loving a rock star. But spending time with the man who let her down ten years ago shows her that something’s missing from her life—fun.

But will DJ be able to keep her heart from becoming involved in this “just for fun” relationship? And more importantly, will Brent?

K.C. also answered some follow-up interview questions!

Since our last interview, you've penned THE COWBOY ROCK STAR, part of the Texas Sunrise Box Set. How did the book come about, and what about it was the most fun to write? 

This book ended up being life changing for me. A little less than a year ago I connected with a great bunch of indie authors who were interested in doing a box set together. Fast forward numerous ups and downs and curve balls, five of us authors formed a company called the Chick Tales.

The THE ROCK STAR COWBOY has been my funniest book to date. I usually am pretty nervous about writing humor. I think it's one of the hardest things to get across on the page, but the hero in Rock Star, Brent Kane, could be written in no other way. He is pretty full of himself, and yet, at the same time doesn't take himself too seriously. It was really fun writing about some of the crazy situations Brent finds himself in. So even though there are times that the heroine, DJ, may want to choke him, I know the readers will still be rooting for them both to get their happy-ever-after.

I'm sure they will! How did the concept of Somewhere, TX come about, and how is it developing?

Chick Tales published our first box set called TEXAS SUNRISE, in which we created a central town called Somewhere TX. We created all the characters, maps, and timelines for this town and we hope to continue publishing in Somewhere for a long time to come. So yes, THE COWBOY ROCK STAR was life changing for me because from this book, not only did I get great company, but a wonderful group of authors that I now call my friends.

Sounds like lots of benefits all around! Your first book, DARK FUTURE, came out in 2011. What have you learned as a writer in the four years since publication, and is there anything you'd do differently?

Ha! I think the question should be would I do anything the same? I feel like I spent a good portion of the time at the beginning of my career muddled in self-doubt. There was so much time wasted in wondering if I was good enough or wanting to write for the approval of others. I remember thinking that I would live or die by a review left on Amazon or my editor's comments. Not anymore. If people don't like my writing, so be it. If people don't want to read my books, so be it. What I realized is that at the end of the day, I am writing for myself. Which may seem weird since I would love to have millions of fans around the world who love and support my work, but if I am not happy with my book/writing than it doesn't matter what anyone says...I'll never be satisfied. But the flip side of this is true. If I am happy with my work than it doesn't matter what people say because I know that I accomplished the goal of that book and I did it to the best of my ability. In the end, it is my name out there and I have to be proud of my work. Fortunately, when I am happy with a book, readers seem to agree.

I'm so glad you're writing what's true to you, and not caring what others think! What are some of your current projects? 

My latest space opera romance, THE SPACE CAPTAIN'S COURTESAN, is out and has gotten some great reviews. It is probably my favorite book to date. The next Somewhere, TX box set, TEXAS STRAIGHT UP, will be out this July and my book, THE BLACKHEARTED COWBOY, will be one of the five full length novels. I'm excited to see what readers think about the second installment in the Somewhere TX series. THE BALCKHEARTED COWBOY is very much in a different vein than ROCK STAR. It explores some darker themes and has some very emotional subject matter. I hope readers will enjoy it as much as they did my first installment.

To grab THE COWBOY ROCK STAR for yourself, feel free to click on the Amazon icon below:

TEMPTED BY FIRE by Erin Kellison (featured in the Dark and Damaged Box Set!)

I've featured Erin Kellison a few times in the past, namely here and here. Her newest book, TEMPTED BY FIRE, is featured in the new Dark and Damaged book set. Check out the excerpt included with description below:

Dark and Damaged: Eight Tortured Heroes of Paranormal Romance Boxed Set is now available worldwide for a special introductory price of only $0.99!

This ebook boxed set features all-new, never-before-published hot paranormal romances by eight New York Times and USA Today best-selling romance authors. Tortured alpha-male bad boys will ignite your darkest, most secret desires in these stories about vampires, shifters, dragons, fallen angels, werewolves, demons, psychic warriors and ghosts.

Here’s more about this fantastic eight book boxed set, including an excerpt from one of the stories.

Dark and Damaged: Eight Tortured Heroes of Paranormal Romance is available from Amazon Kindle, Kobo Books, Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple iBooks stores and other retailers. Find the links to your preferred retailer at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/dark-and-damaged/

GoodReads

Dark and Damaged: Eight Tortured Heroes of Paranormal Romance By Jennifer Ashley, Caris Roane, Erin Kellison, Felicity Heaton, Erin Quinn, Laurie London, Bonnie Vanak and Colleen Gleason

LION EYES by Jennifer Ashley
Bree has just decided to give up trying to be a Shifter groupie when a lion Shifter slams into her truck and tells her to drive. Seamus is on the run from hunters, other Shifters, and who knows who else. All Bree knows is that he’s compelling, needs her help, and most intriguing of all, wears no Collar...

BLOOD FLAME by Caris Roane
Vampire Officer Connor of the Crescent Border Patrol tries to suppress his desire for the powerful witch, Iris Meldeere. Because the woman possesses the ability to kill him with the tips of her fingers, how can he possibly fall in love with her? When a double homicide throws them together, he soon finds his deepest fantasies fulfilled as Iris succumbs to his seductions. But as they battle together to stay alive, and love begins to consume them both, will the witch be able to forgive the dark secrets of his past …

HER SINFUL ANGEL by Felicity Heaton
Cast out of Heaven and now the king of Hell, Lucifer is a powerful fallen angel warrior with a heart as cold as ice and soul as black as the bottomless pit. For millennia, he has ruled his realm with an iron fist as he plots the demise of his ancient enemies. When one of those enemies dumps an unconscious mortal female in the courtyard of his fortress and leaves her there, Lucifer finds himself entranced by the beguiling beauty and tempted beyond all reason. But is the enchanting Nina an innocent pawn in the eternal game or part of a plot against him?

TEMPTED BY FIRE by Erin Kellison
A powerful dragon shifter has waited six hundred years to avenge the loss of his family, but the beautiful mediator sent to prevent violence among the Bloodkin doesn’t want to be his key to discovering the murderer—in fact, she wants nothing to do with dragons at all...

REBEL’S DESIRE by Laurie London
A jaded Iron Guild warrior cares about nothing except battling a ruthless enemy, but when a beautiful woman literally runs into his arms, he realizes she holds the key to his success. As passion ignites, he must decide whether to sacrifice the woman he’s falling for or dare to trust his heart again.

THE RESURRECTION OF SAM SLOAN by Erin Quinn
Trapped in the body of a human, the Reaper is about to fall in love with a woman he was never meant to have… When a reaper is trapped in Maggie’s estranged husband’s body, she knows only that the man with her husband’s eyes feels like a stranger… a compelling, seductive stranger who touches her in ways her treacherous husband never could. She wants to trust him, but what about the ghost who haunts their home, implicating him in a gruesome murder…

REDEMPTION by Bonnie Vanak
A cursed alpha wolf promises to free an enslaved Mage if she mates with him so he can sire an heir, not realizing she can destroy the dark secret keeping his pack alive.

RAGING DAWN by Colleen Gleason
After the vampires Max Denton hunts brutally murder his wife, he is nearly destroyed himself and spends the next ten years living a life of violence and revenge. But when sensitive information about his young daughter falls into the hands of the vampires, Max is forced to team up with the woman whose father ultimately caused the death of his wife. Savina Eleaisa has secrets of her own, and she’s determined to do whatever it takes to clear her father’s name: even if it involves seducing the most dangerous of vampires--with or without the help of the arrogant, brooding Max Denton.

Dark and Damaged: Eight Tortured Heroes of Paranormal Romance is available from Amazon Kindle, Kobo Books, Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple iBooks stores and other retailers. Find the links to your preferred retailer at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/dark-and-damaged/

EXCERPT FROM TEMPTED BY FIRE BY ERIN KELLISON

The garage was labeled CARRIAGE HOUSE—Bloodkin sure liked fancy names and titles—and there seemed to be a small office inside. Emerson knocked on the door, and then tried the handle. Happy day, there was her driver with his feet up on a table watching television, a soda in hand.
“If we can be on the road in thirty seconds,” she said, “I’ll give you five hundred dollars.” Company money.
Her driver stood and grabbed his coat from the back of his chair.
“That won’t be necessary,” Thane said behind her. “I’ll drive.”
The driver looked crestfallen. Emerson felt the same way. How had Thane crept up so quietly?
“That’s very kind of you, Mr. Ealdian,” she said, jerking a nod at her driver to get him moving, “but I have a ride.”
Her driver took a step toward the garage door.
“It’s Thane,” he told her, then turned to the driver. “Five thousand dollars for you to sit back down again.”
Emerson scowled at the driver as he wavered a second, stepped back, and then traitorously lowered his butt back onto his seat.
She held out her hand to the driver. “Give me the keys.”
“Emerson, you have to come with me,” Thane said in that scary low tone of his.
No, she didn’t.
The driver put the keys in her hand. She might forgive him, after all.
Taking the side door into the garage—six cars were neatly situated side by side—she pressed the fob to locate hers.
“Can I help you?” came a voice from the back. Some Carriage House servant maybe?
“I just need my car, thanks,” she called.
“Emerson.” Thane took her arm. “Someone killed my wife and son.”
Like a slap, the truth of the statement hit her. His wife and son. If dragons were real, maybe he was directly related to remains that were six hundred years old.
She froze in place, suddenly uncertain.
Those remains had been his family. Someone had murdered them. Like her, Thane had been left alone in the world. He was in pain. She didn’t understand the Bloodkin, but that much she knew. Oh, God. She was such a pushover.
She turned to him, and for the first time, really looked at him. Thane Ealdian’s eyes were as full of feeling as a stormy sky. The indigo color flickered with firelight from within, the vertical pupils like upheld daggers. His expression was drawn tight over features that were rough in their beauty—that full, tensed mouth, high cheekbones defined by such strain, brows angled with tension. His was the face of a desperate, angry…well, dragon.
As close as he was, towering over her, broad shoulders blocking the door, she was acutely aware of him as a man. Had she actually laughed at him once?
She couldn’t help shaking. “Look, I don’t know how you think I can help you. I have no idea what’s going on.”
“And no idea where you came from, either.”
“Ignorance is bliss.” She was sure of it now.
He gave her a circumspect once-over, and his gaze felt like a scorching sun on exposed skin. “No, not for you. You’re Bloodkin through and through.”
“Look, I don’t even think I am Bloodkin. I think there was a mistake. I don’t feel like a dragon.” She mostly suppressed a hysterical laugh. “And I don’t want to. That shift was horrible.”
“It didn’t have to be,” Thane said. “The shift is usually…rapturous. Fast and hot. Freedom you can’t imagine until you’ve taken to the sky. You’ve got the Blood. I’ve seen the dragon in your eyes.” He paused. “No, don’t shake your head. I have.”
“I would know if I were a dragon.” She’d said the same thing to Bryan.
Thane pulled her even closer, and heat the likes of which she’d never known—velvet, caressing, sensual—moved over her skin. “And what will you do when the dragon grows stronger? When the Night Song touches you.”
So close. Too close. “Night Song?”
He leaned down, mouth to her ear. “My lady, the night will call to you. How will you fight it? When it’s time, how will you get to the safety of Havyn without the aid of the Bloodkin?”
She dropped her gaze to the concrete floor, still shaking her head. She didn’t believe it, couldn’t. Night Song? Havyn?
And damn, it was so hot in here. She tried to put a little space between them.
Thane allowed her an inch. “Hic sunt dracones,” he said. “Here be dragons. It’s on a few very old maps but is nevertheless difficult to find.”
She dared to look Thane in his extraordinary eyes. So what if it sent electric shocks along her nerves? “I was very graphically warned that I would die if I continued with the mediation.” Specifically, if she didn’t say the remains belonged to the Heolstors, which apparently, they didn’t. “A man killed himself in front of me.”
“You’re not a coward,” Thane said, his upper lip curling with satisfaction. Why did he keep saying that? “Nor easily bullied.”
Bullied. She hadn’t thought of it that way, but, yes, someone had tried to bully her, and in the worst way possible. How stupid of her not to realize it.
“I’m terrified,” she admitted
“Not the same thing as being a coward.”
“I saw a dragon today.” She wasn’t over it. Not nearly.
Thane smiled. “And wasn’t he magnificent? You should see one sky bound.”
Her heart lost its beat. “Are you going to kill me?”
His smile faded and he gave a reluctant shrug. “I hope not. I’m near my final shift, too. I can only promise I’ll keep my distance when the Night Song tempts me.”
It wasn’t much of an assurance, but she really did like how honest he was. Lots of crazy, but no bullshit.
“I still don’t know how I can help you,” she said.
“Think,” he told her. “You’re the keystone in the bridge between me and the one who murdered my family.”
That sounded ominous.
He leaned in again. “Who seems to know more about you than you know about yourself?”
Emerson thought back. There was no one in her life who knew… Wait. “Mr. Fraser.” He’d even admitted to being another messenger. And he’d called her, my lady. Which had been weird coming from him.
Thane pulled back a smile, fierce and feral, his lightning eyes flashing. “That’s where we’ll start.”

Grab the boxed set for just $0.99 to read this story and seven others…

Dark and Damaged: Eight Tortured Heroes of Paranormal Romance is available from Amazon Kindle, Kobo Books, Barnes and Noble Nook, Apple iBooks stores and other retailers. Find the links to your preferred retailer at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/dark-and-damaged/

SHELTER US, by Laura Nicole Diamond

I met Laura at BEA (BookExpo America), and when I found out about her new book, SHELTER US, I had to feature it. Have a look:

Since the death of her newborn baby, lawyer-turned-stay-at-home mom Sarah Shaw has been struggling to keep it together for her law professor husband and two young sons. With her husband burying himself in his career and her friendships all having withered, she is lost in a private world of grief. Then one day, walking in LA, Sarah s heart catches at the sight of a young homeless woman pushing a baby in a stroller and saving them becomes her mission. An unlikely bond grows between Sarah and the mother, Josie, whose pride and strained relationship with her own mother prevent her from going home to Oakland. Through her friendship with Josie, Sarah slowly learns that those we love are never far, even in death and that sometimes it is the people we set out to save who save us.


Laura was also kind enough to answer some interview questions:

According to your website bio, your first career was as a civil rights lawyer. In what ways, if any, does this background inform your writing, and can you tell us more about your journey toward publication?

The same instinct toward social justice that motivated me to become a civil rights lawyer animates my writing. For example, I wanted to write about a young homeless mother and the series of circumstances that had led to her being homeless, because I had met young women in this situation and had been so moved by their strength and resilience, and by how different they were from the stereotype of homelessness. By writing about one young woman, I hoped to humanize all people in that situation, to build compassion and understanding, and to show that anyone could become homeless.

My journey to publication required patience and persistence. As a first time novelist, I asked people I knew in the book publishing world what they recommended. While they said, “there is no one path to publication,” the consensus seemed to be that an author should submit to agents, in the hopes that one will take you on as a client and find a publisher. I pursued that path for about two years on and off, submitting to agents, revising my manuscript, submitting again. At the same time, I began to see the growth of small independent publishers that accepted direct manuscript submissions, without an agent. So I followed that path as well, submitting to She Writes Press while continuing my agent search process. When She Writes Press accepted my manuscript and connected me with an editor, I decided to jump at that opportunity.

Sounds like a good assessment of the varying paths we can take. And I love the premise of SHELTER US. How did the idea develop as you wrote it, and what do you want readers to take away from the story?

Thank you. I started with a character, and no plot. The character of Sarah, mother of two boys, was lost in an emotional funk. As I wrote the first draft, the fact that she had suffered the death of an infant emerged, which became an important part of her character. That developed in part because as a mother myself, I learned that the fear that the worst could happen to your child is always beneath the surface. I have “visited” that emotional terrain often – it happens every time you warn them to look both ways before they cross the street, because you are always imagining what could happen if they don’t. I knew that I wanted to write about a homeless mother as well, so I decided that the two women would meet, and that their friendship over time would be the catalyst that helps each other return to a life they long for.

I think, as with any art, the audience will take away whatever they most need. For me, I hope readers will take away that reaching out to help another person can help heal our own wounds. Some readers have responded to different messages that were not as central to my mind, but are absolutely central to the story, like the importance of communication and that leaving things unsaid can be destructive to relationships. Others have said that they view homeless people differently now, which thrilled me.

Wonderful! You did a radio spot for Expressing Motherhood. What was that like, and what would you recommend to authors interested in doing radio spots?

Well, aside from the fact that it was uncomfortable because I was sitting on a pile of shoes in my closet to avoid the sound of tree trimmers in the neighbor’s yard, it was great fun. Lindsay Kavet, the Director of the play Expressing Motherhood and host of the radio show, is an inspiration and dedicated to supporting creativity in mothers. It was great to talk about how motherhood for me was a creative muse, as opposed to a hindrance to creativity. I do recommend radio spots to authors. It can be wild to hear an interviewer’s take on your work. My advice is to be ready for anything, and be yourself.

Sounds like a great idea (minus the tree trimmers of course!). What are some of your current projects?

I am working on a second novel, I am excited to say, which is set in a few different cities in the East Coast, and in two different centuries. (I wanted to stretch, after writing Shelter Us, which is set in the present in my hometown.) I am also playing with different storytelling formats of Shelter Us, such as film or a television series unfolding Sarah and Josie’s story. I have a written a draft of a travel memoir, also, but that has taken a back seat to fiction for now.

A travel memoir sounds fun! Thanks, Laura, for a great interview.

To snag SHELTER US for yourself, click on the Amazon icon below:

Knowing Yourself Before Diving In

This week on Operation Awesome, I posted about the importance of knowing yourself before making life-changing decisions.

Here's the photo that inspired the post:

"Always know yourself before making a decision that may change your life"

For my other Operation Awesome posts, feel free to view them here. Happy Wednesday, everyone!