SWEET TALKING MAN by Liz Talley

While writing with other authors in last month's Winter Writing Festival run by the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood, I was lucky enough to do some writing sprints with Liz Talley. When I found out more about her books, I couldn't wait to feature them. Her next book, SWEET TALKING MAN, sounds exquisite:

Leif Lively is the hottest thing to happen to Magnolia Bend. But single mother Abigail Orgeron figures he's another heartbreaker and does her best to ignore the steamy glances he tosses her way. When he speaks, though, her resistance crumbles! His sweet words, humor and laid-back ways captivate buttoned-up Abigail.

For once, losing control feels so good, and this no-strings arrangement is getting serious. What will she do when Leif solves the family mystery that brought him to town and decides to leave? Because she's learning that the biggest love means taking the biggest risk.


Liz also answered some interview questions:

According to your website bio, The Thornbirds was the first romance you read. What, if any, influence did it have on you, and can you tell us more about your journey toward writing and publication?

 As a preteen I found solace in reading. Something about being in those middling years either pushes a girl away from books or toward them. They were a magnet for me, and romance was a whole new world. I picked up The Thornbirds after seeing an episode on TV and that was it. The angst, the passion, the YEARNING. Oh, I loved every word of it. So romance became my go-to genre.

I agree--I read some of The Thornbirds in high school and loved it (and the TV series was amazing too). I love the premise of SWEET TALKING MAN. Where did the idea come from, and what do you want readers to take away after reading the story? 

SWEET TALKING MAN is the second in my Superromance series, “Home in Magnolia Bend”. The first book, The Sweetest September (Aug ‘14) was born with the idea to do a secret baby book…but a baby that was not so secret. I borrowed a character from another series (Shelby Mackey) and reprised her for the role of my heroine. I loved her character so much and was glad to give her a happily ever after. SWEET TALKING MAN is the story of Abigail, one of the Beauchamp family siblings. The theme for this story was easy for me. Abigail had to learn to let go a little and Leif had to learn how to hold on for once. “Hotter in Atlanta” was a short story I did in early 2014. I also had His Forever Girl following (Feb ‘14)  and Cowboys for Christmas (November ’14). Until this moment, I hadn’t realized that in a 13 month period I had three books out and two novellas release. Huh. No wonder I’m fighting all those white hairs in my head.

And you've had a good reason to be busy! As part of the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood group of bloggers, you help with and participate in the Winter Writing Festival. How did the festival come about, and what, in your opinion, is the best thing it offers writers? 

The festival was birthed from a comment about NaNoWriMo. So many of us are busy mothers and the timing for that wonderful event is tough for most women. Because our blog focused on helping writers on their journey to publication, we hit on the idea to do something similar but at the beginning of the year when everyone was rearing to put pen to paper and accomplish those resolutions. Thus the festival was born. We wanted it to be flexible so that it wasn’t just about writing new word, but rather fitting for each author’s individual journey. Best thing to me is the encouragement and the chat room sprints. Nothing makes you more productive like people who are timing you and expecting you to actually work.

Indeed. I got a ton of word counts and editing done, all while being a part of a great community of writers. Finally, what are some of your current projects? 

Currently I’m writing a 2-in-1 book with the talented Kimberly Van Meter which will come out for Harlequin Blaze in Nov/Dec 2015. I’m also working on a new book for the Blaze line, a new direction for me but one I’m very excited about. My final Superromance (for the time being) Sweet Southern Nights comes out in August 2015. And I’m also working on a new anthology with Kim Law and Terri Osburn and a two book contract with Amazon Montlake which I’m VERY excited about. All in all, I’m a busy gal and I like it that way.

To snag SWEET TALKING MAN for yourself, feel free to click the link below: