Michigan Author Spotlight With Jennifer Lowery

                Day three of the Michigan Author Spotlight continues with Jennifer Lowery today.  

Hi Kelli and all you fabulous readers out there *waves* Thank you so much for having me today!  

 

We’re so glad to have you! Why don’t you tell us a little about yourself:

I’m a wife of twenty-one years to a fabulous man and mother of two teenagers! We live in a small town in Michigan and love it. My son is in college, my daughter will be a freshman in high school. I write full time now after quitting my job as a Respiratory Therapist (after 13 years). Yep, it was time to follow my dream and do what I love the most! And I’m so happy I did! 

Good for you! Are you published?  

Yep! I have three books published now:

Hard Core, October 8, 2012, Lyrical Press

The Treasure, January 28, 2013, Crimson Romance

Murphy’s Law, March 4, 2013, Lyrical Press

The Maze, coming March 2014, Lyrical Press

Taking Chances, November 3, 2012, self-published short story
Are you available in print? In eBook?

All my books are available in eBook. Hard Core is available in print.

I’ve read Hard Core and loved it! Seriously. So I know what you write but why don’t you share with everyone?  

Romantic Suspense/Military Romance. And she’s good!
Are you originally from Michigan or just residing here now? Born and raised here J

We know you are a Michigan Author but do you consider yourself a “Michigan Author”? Do your stories take place in Michigan, generally?

Many of my stories take place in Michigan.

Do you create fictitious Michigan towns? If so are they ever based on actual towns? 
I create fictitious towns, but they are always based on actual places.

Tell us a bit about your work - could be your latest work or the work that most predominately features Michigan.

In my book, The Treasure, Amelia is from Cedar Falls, Michigan. A fictional town that features a restaurant similar to one in the town I grew up in. I actually had one of my friends from high school read the book and email me when they recognized it. It was very cool.

Here’s the blurb from The Treasure:

Amelia Sawyer is looking for adventure outside her ordinary life. She hires bush pilot Brody Kern to fly her into the South American jungle, expecting a dashing, debonair version of Indiana Jones, but Amelia butts heads with the brooding, gruff man.

 

Brody Kern, former Air Force fighter pilot, doesn’t need another Sawyer determined to find the elusive Paraíso.  People had been hurt or killed trying to find the mysterious place, including Amelia’s aunt, but Brody’s business partner has cleaned out their account and taken off with the money. Now Jeremy’s bookie is breathing down Brody’s neck, threatening to break his kneecaps, or worse, if he doesn’t pay his friend’s gambling debts.   

 

As Brody and Amelia hunt down the treasure with every criminal in the area wanting a piece, will it be the adventure of a lifetime—or will it result in heartbreaking betrayal?  

 

Sensuality Level: Sensual

 

Here’s an excerpt from The Treasure:

Copyright 2013, Jennifer Lowery

All rights reserved, Crimson Romance.

 

The door to the hangar flew open. Brody popped his head out. “Miss Sawyer, we have to go. Right now. Move it.”

Not the words she wanted to hear, but his tone and the red welt on his cheek got her moving. Clutching her bags like a shield, she hurried toward the hangar, tripping only once in her rush to see what happened.

She stumbled through the door. “What happened?” she asked, staring at the crumpled body of Mr. Newton and another man she didn’t recognize on the floor.

Brody, who was throwing side panels on the plane, barked, “Get in the plane.”

“That plane?” Getting in the red and white piece of tin didn’t sound like a good idea. The plane looked even less reliable than his Land Rover. And wasn’t that an engine part lying on the floor beside his toolbox?

"She’ll run fine.” Brody ran around to the other side of the plane, obviously to finish his hasty repair and put his plane back together. “Now, get the hell in.”

 Mr. Newton groaned.

 “I’m not sure about this,” she said. “What did you do to them?”

 “Nothing they didn’t invite.”

 In other words, he wasn’t going to tell her.

 “If you don’t get in this plane right now, then our friends there are going to wake up and they aren’t going to be happy. They want the map, Miss Sawyer, and I have no intention of giving it to them. Do you?”

 Amelia shook her head, looking at the two men who were beginning to stir. “Okay, okay.” She hurried toward the plane. “You’re giving me answers to your change of heart just as soon as we get out of here, Brody Kern.”

 He opened the door for her, took her bags and tossed them in the back, then lifted her in the front seat before he slammed the door closed. Once he was in the seat next to her, he brought the plane to life. It choked and sputtered before gaining power.

 Reaching over her shoulder, she put on a seatbelt as Brody maneuvered the plane out of the hangar and onto the runway, which was nothing more than a cleared path through the jungle. The plane bounced and shook as they gained speed. It was nothing like the jet she flew in on. Nothing at all.

 She had loved the plane ride over. Loved flying the second she set foot on the jet. Maybe because it was the official start of her adventure, but either way, it was more fun than this. Safer, for sure. Brody’s plane sounded like a tank rattling down the road and it rode like one too. And she thought his Land Rover was bad. It felt like riding in a tin can with seats. Very close quarters. Every time they hit a bump, her shoulder hit Brody’s.

 “Are we going fast enough?” Amelia asked, worried they would hit the end of the runway before they gained enough speed. “Do you know how to fly this thing?”

 Brody didn’t answer, just concentrated on his task. He seemed confident enough with his hands on the oddly shaped steering wheel and his eyes watching the many dials. She had one of the funny shaped wheels on her side too, but she didn’t touch it. It moved with Brody’s so she let him have it.

 Nerves pounding, heart pumping, Amelia held on for dear life as they barreled down the runway. Frightened and excited, she watched the runway get shorter. Her life was in Brody’s hands and somehow that exhilarated her. Trees rushed past, her heart raced.

 They were almost at the end of the path. Trees loomed ahead, tall and unyielding, creating a barrier. Amelia gripped the seat in anticipation.

 They weren’t going to make it.

 

This sounds so good! I need to buy it and so do you...

Buy The Treasure:

Crimson Romance ebooks | Amazon | B&N | iTunes

 

 

You said you set your books in Michigan, is it because of that old adage “Write what you know” or is it something else?

I think I set my books in Michigan because I think it so cool when I pick up a book that is written in Michigan because I actually live there, lol!

What is your favorite thing about Michigan? The lakes and the cooler weather.

Okay now some just for fun questions …

Salt Water Taffy or Mackinaw Island Fudge: Mackinaw Island Fudge
The Island or the city: Island-I worked there for a summer after I graduated High School!

That sounds like fun!
Trolls VS. Yoopers – your vote: Trolls Your favorite Michigan Season:  Fall Michigan or Michigan State: Michigan
Football or Hockey: Hockey Me too!
Your favorite Michigan City: Frankenmuth because Bronner’s is there and I love Christmas! Your favorite Michigan Lake: Lake Michigan
Your favorite Michigan Hideaway: School Section Lake
Too funny. My Grandparents used to take me here as a kid all the time.
Paradise or Hell: Paradise
What’s your favorite Michigan Highway : I-96
Favorite Michigan tourist activity: Visiting the lighthouses

And finally what’s next for you?

I am working on a Christmas anthology with two fabulous authors, titled, Christmas in Camouflage that will be released November 1^st! Mine features a Navy SEAL and is so much fun to write! I just love Christmas stories!

I am also preparing a requested submission for an editor from Sourcebooks!! Big Squee on that one! I am also writing a proposal on the series that goes along with the full she requested because she wanted to hear about that too! I’ve been walking on air since that request J

And on the back burner is Book #2 in my Onyx Group/mercenary series which is the sequel to Hard Core. And Book #2 in my Sawyer Sisters Trilogy which will be the sequel to The Treasure.

Yep! Need more hours in the day, lol.

Oh my goodness! So much going on! So many things to celebrate! Congratulations Jennifer and thanks so much for coming and hanging out with me today.

 

Thank you for having me today, Kelli!! I just want to send out a big THANK YOU to all my readers out there! Without you I wouldn’t be here. My wish is to one day meet each and every one of you so I can personally thank you for your generosity and support! 
All my best, 
Jennifer

Find Jennifer:

Author Website   Facebook   Twitter   Romance Recipes

Michigan Author Spotlight with Kelly Kenyon

Continuing our Michigan Author spotlight we have  Kelly Kenyon here with us today.  Kelly why don’t you go ahead and introduce yourself.

I have always been interested in all things artsy. Writing, singing, and the fine arts have been a passion of mine since childhood. I love becoming engrossed in an amazing story, thus my thirst for becoming an author myself. I tried out for American Idol a few years back. Didn’t make it, hence why I am still not famous yet ;)   I am currently a dental assistant/student/mother/wife. I am taking writing classes at Delta College and will soon achieve my writing certificate through them. I have been writing since a very young age, but have recently gotten back into it with more enthusiasm and hope to get some works published once I have finished them.

lol funny you should say that. My singing career didn’t work out either and that’s literally how I ended up here :) So tell us, are you published?

I have a couple short-short stories that I “self published” through smashwords.com. They are free to read. These were turned assignments that I had turned in for my writing classes at Delta, and I wanted to share them to get some feedback.

Don’t leave us hanging what’s the link?

http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/KellyKenyon

Are you available in print? In eBook?

Right now, just the two short stories are available in ebook version on smashwords.com, however, I do plan on being available in print once I have some of my bigger works finished.

What do you write?  

My works in progress range from sci-fi to horror, but I have been writing some suspense and literary fiction as well.

Great! Now on to the nitty gritty … Are you originally from Michigan or just residing here now?

I am a Michigander by birth, and have lived in Michigan most of my life with the exception of a few years spent in Wyoming and Germany with my husband who, at the time, was in the Air Force. We moved back in 2007. Living in these other places gave us a better appreciation for our beautiful mitten shaped state. I never want to live anywhere else.

We know you’re a Michigan author but do you consider yourself to be a “Michigan Author?”

Most of my stories do take place in Michigan. The novel I am currently working on takes place on a fictional island on Lake Michigan.  Rainbows is also set in the “boondocks” of Michigan, in a small farm town where I grew up. I am currently writing a screenplay for my screenwriting class at Delta that also takes place on the Rail Trail near the Tridge in Midland, Michigan. A series I hope to work on soon, will be set in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I will obviously have to do some studying of that area to ensure that my scenes are authentic.

Are there any specific places you’ve written about that are borrowed from real life?

Some of the places I write about are real. In Rainbows, the dirt road and field are real places I have visited. The Rail Trail in Midland is also a real place. It used to be a railroad. It was paved over and made into a pathway for bikers, joggers, and roller bladders to use leisurely.

Do your fictitious towns have any basis in real-life? In my main project I have created a fictitious island in Lake Michigan. There are some islands in our lakes, but this one is totally sci-fi based and does not truly exist. However, the city that is also fictitious is loosely based on Ludington, Michigan, a small little pier town along Lake Michigan.

Can we get a little snippet of what you’re working on right now?

Well, this book is in the making as we speak and has been for a few years now. I decided to get some more experience under my belt before attempting to finish the project. Once it is finished and published I will give out that information. But for now, the two short stories on smashwords will suffice as a sample of my writing. Keep in mind, these two works were assignments for classes, and are very raw. They were edited by me, not an experienced editor. The novel I am working on is my baby, and I have to keep her protected until she is ready to face the world. It is a Sci-Fi/Horror/Romance mix, and I think it will be epic ;)

Sounds like it!

You set your books in Michigan, is it because of that old adage “Write what you know” or is it something else?

What is your favorite thing about Michigan? It is definitely the adage write what you know. I find it very hard to write about other non-fictitious settings when I have not personally experienced them. You can create a whole new magical world, but even then, those places have some basing on places you have already encountered.

What is your favorite thing about Michigan?

When we lived in Wyoming, I deeply missed our beautiful trees. Wyoming was barren and dry, Michigan is vibrant green, and we have lakes everywhere. In Wyoming you had to travel very far just to find reservoir in the mountains. In Germany I also missed our beautiful lakes, but there it rarely snowed. When it did, it melted right away. So, my favorite things about Michigan is our beautiful greenery, our refreshing lakes, and of course our plentiful snow.

I love the snow too!

Okay now some just for fun questions …




Three brands of fudge from Mackinac Island. (Jennifer Day/Photo for the Tribune)

Salt Water Taffy or Mackinaw Island Fudge:  Fudge. Can’t beat chocolate ;)
The Island or the city: I can honestly say I have not been to the Island, or at least not that I remember. So my choice would have to be the city. I also come very close to needing a changing after crossing the bridge. Me + heights= bad news.
Yeah … I’m not such a fan of heights either.
Trolls VS. Yoopers – your vote: Trolls
Your favorite Michigan Season:  Fall. So many beautiful colors!
Michigan or Michigan State: Michigan!
Football or Hockey: Football
Your favorite Michigan City: Ludington
Your favorite Michigan Lake: Michigan
Your favorite Michigan Hideaway: Rogers City
A beautiful choice!
Paradise or Hell: I am a horror buff, so I’d love to visit Hell, especially when it freezes over.

Tahquamenon Falls

I’ll let you borrow my Get Out Of Hell Free card when you go …  on second thought maybe you better get your own ;)
What’s your favorite Michigan Highway : Um...75?
Favorite Michigan tourist activity: Visiting the falls (Tahquamenon) Your favorite book that showcases Michigan: The Virgin Suicides
And finally what’s next for you?  When can we expect to read more from you?

I do not have a release date for my next piece of writing. It may take me a while. I am simply trying to get through with the classes needed to achieve my writing certificate. Once this is finished, I plan on getting more serious about my novels. I wanted these classes to better understand the work that goes into writing, the formatting, and the confidence boost I needed to realize that I can do it! My Plan is, finish out the program at Delta. This summer, however, I am going to be spending more time writing for me, not for assignments. These ideas are eating away at my brain and I need to get them out on paper. I know now what I am capable of and that I can captivate my audience with my writing. I am ready for the next steps in my future career as an author.

How can we keep up with you? Give us your social media stats ;)
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/kellyjokenyonBlog/webpage:  http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/KellyKenyonGreat! Thanks Kelly! It was so nice having you here today!
If you have a comment or a question for either Kelly or … well … Kelli  leave them in the comments below and one of us will respond.  
Don’t forget to tune in tomorrow too for day three in the Michigan Author Spotlight.

Michigan Author Spotlight with Cindy Ullery

Today is the start of a weeklong blog-fest I have planned with some pretty cool people. I'm talking to authors this week. All of them are in varying stages of author-hood but have at least one common thread tying them all together. We are all Michigan Authors.

My first guest is Cindy Ullery. Cindy why don't you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?
Married at sixteen, I have two children, two grandchildren and, amazingly, my original husband.  Though I’ve worked a multitude of jobs (store clerk, housekeeper, secretary, book-keeper, construction worker, kindergarten aide), I have written, in one form or another, for as long as I can remember.  What started out as write-to-keep-myself-sane poetry soon turned into personalized poems I sold to gift-givers, and it wasn’t long before my love of reading romances had my overactive brain itching to give that a try as well.  I’ve written Historical Romances and just recently crossed over into Contemporary.  Since my romance writing has been another tool used to keep my sanity, I am seriously beginning to worry that I am teetering on the edge on any given day.

 

 

Funny you should say that I've always sort of thought that one has to be a little bit crazy to be any good at writing. :) Are you published Cindy? 
 

No, I am not.  Thirty years ago, I sent three of my very first romances sailing into the slush pile, receiving personal letters and comments on all three from publishers such as Kensington and Avon.  Unfortunately I was too stupid at the time to realize how lucky I was.  One of the romances, a historical, actually had the publisher asking for changes and a chance to view it once those changes were made.  But life, being life, had my hubby injured on the  job and by the time we came to terms with our new existence and I managed a rewrite, the requesting editor had been replaced, policy had changed, and my manuscript was sent back unopened.  I’ve not attempted submissions since, but have never stopped writing – that sanity issue again.  My family thinks it’s a waste of time to write without submitting.  Me?  I kind of like my sanity, thank you very much.
What about now? Do you ever think of trying again? Is your work  (or at least parts of it) available to be read anywhere on the internet?

 

 

No, but I have seriously been considering making a few submissions once again.
Good! I'd be glad to point you in a few good directions. Now onto the good stuff. Are You

originally from Michigan or just residing here now?   

 

A born and raised Michigander – that’s me.

We know you are a Michigan Author but do you consider yourself a “Michigan Author”? Do the stories you write take place in Michigan?   

 

 All of my books are set here in Michigan.  It’s an accuracy thing with me.  If I had the opportunity and means to become a world traveler, I might branch out a bit, but I’m a firm believer in writing what, or in this case where, you know.

 

I hear yah! Do you write about areas that actually exist here? 

 

I do.  Usually.  My Historical Romances are set in the Upper Peninsula, late 1890’s, in Grand Marais, Seney, and the Au Sable Lighthouse, which also happens to be my very favorite place in this world.  My contemporary, however, takes place in a small-minded, fictional, Lower Peninsula town.

Au Sable Lighthouse

Is your fictitious Michigan towns ever based on actual towns?    

 

I suppose my fictional town could be based on any number of small towns, anywhere across our great country.  Small-mindedness doesn’t seem to be confined to Michigan, darn it all.  

Ha! You're right. It doesn't ;) Tell us a bit about one of your recent works. 

 

 Okay.  I’ll give you part of a scene from my contemporary, Maddie’s Mistake, the story of two best friends facing their worst fears while dealing with a friendship suddenly twisted about by love and desire.  In this scene, a slightly inebriated Maddie has decided to throw caution to the wind and have a taste of what she’s always secretly desired: her best friend Jake. 

 Here goes….

 

    “Don’t be stupid, Jake.”  She was glaring now, her gorgeous eyes the color of the whiskey sloshing about in her glass.  “Are you serious about this one – this Tessa?”

    Smiling slightly, he shook his head.  “She’s just a friend, Madison.”

    “Mmm….”

    “What’s that supposed to mean?” he found himself demanding with her tone.

    “Just one more pretty to add to your little harem?”

    “For pity’s sake, Maddie.”   

    “Are you sleeping with her?”

    “What!”

    “Are you….”

    “I heard you the first time,” he snapped, interrupting her.

    “Then answer the question,” she directed, tone reasonable.

    “No.  I will not.  My sex life,” he shifted uncomfortably, “is none of your concern.”

    To his surprise, she laughed.  “It wasn’t my concern when you were in the back seat of your little red Mustang with Sheila Ferguson either, Jake, but I managed to get every little detail on that one.”

    “Good God.  That was a dozen years ago, Maddie.  How….”

    “Hair dye.”

    “What?”  He was beginning to think it was his new favorite word.

    “I bribed her with hair dye.  Her roots were showing, and her parents were refusing to hand over any more money.  So I paid her off in hair dye to tell me every single thing you did to her that night.”

    “Oh, my God….”

    “She said you weren’t all that good at it either,” she added, tone disappointed.  “I wanted to punch her when she started spreading that all around school.”

    Bristling, he sat straighter on her couch.  “It was my first time, for Christ’s sake.”

    Those doe eyes of hers swung up to his, a definite sparkle in them now.  “Was it?  I didn’t realize.  Peggy Sue Terwillegar had been telling anyone who’d listen that you and she had….”

    “Stop!  I did nothing with Peggy Sue.  Well, next to nothing,” he added, color creeping when she just stared at him.

    She gifted him with a giggle.  “I didn’t think what she told me was anatomically possible anyway, but Peggy Sue swore….”

    “I don’t want to know what Peggy Sue swore,” he broke in, cutting her off.  “It’s bad enough that Sheila was strolling around the countryside advertising I didn’t know what the Hell I was doing in the back seat of that Mustang.”

    “You scored points for trying,” she soothed, “in my book, at least.”

    To his horror, he felt a grin forming.  “Thank you, Maddie.  That really helps.”  Falling silent, he finally muttered, “Christ.  My reputation in shreds for one small bottle of hair dye.”

    “It was a case, Jake.  She made me buy her a whole case.”

    His grin widened.  “That makes me feel so much better, Mad.  Thanks.”

    “Don’t mention it.”

    Those eyes were on him again, in places he’d rather not acknowledge and, this time, he squirmed a lot on his couch.

    “So, you’re not planning on marrying anyone in the near future?”

    “Huh?”

    “And you accuse me of being drunk.”  She shook her head, wobbling a bit on her chair.  “Listen carefully, Jacob.  Try to follow the conversation.”

    “I don’t want to follow the conversation, Maddie.  I don’t even want to guess where it might lead.  I think you should go to bed now.”

    Her gaze ran over him again, oh so slowly this time.  “Funny you should mention that, Jake.  I’ve been thinking about that very thing.”

 

 

 

 

 

First of all I just have to say I am a complete sucker for friends to lovers romances. So you already had a point from me in that aspect but I loved this excerpt. I want to read more! What happens? I think you better get to submitting I'm sure I'm not the only one out there dying to know what comes next for Maddie and Jacob.

You said before your set your books in Michigan because of that old adage “Write what you know” is that all of it or is there something else behind it too?  

 

I think it’s mainly the ‘write what you know’, but my love of our state’s history and the beauty of the terrain may also play a part in my decision.

What is your favorite thing about Michigan?    

 

I should lie and say the people, but we have some not-so-nice and none-too-friendly people in our state.  So, being a lover of honesty, I’m going with the Great Lakes.
Good choice!  4 out of 5 Great Lakes Prefer Michigan ;)

Okay now some just for fun questions …

Salt Water Taffy or Mackinaw Island Fudge:    Mackinaw Island Fudge, hands down. The Island or the city:    The Island.
Trolls VS. Yoopers – your vote:    Yoopers.  I was born on the wrong peninsula; I’m a Yooper at heart.
Psst. Me too Cindy. Me too.
Your favorite Michigan Season:    Autumn.  There is nothing more breathtaking. Michigan or Michigan State:    Sorry, not answering.  I have lovers of both in my family, and I have vowed neutrality.
Just call Cindy Switzerland ;)
Football or Hockey:    Definitely hockey.
Your favorite Michigan City:    Grand Marais.
Your favorite Michigan Lake:    Lake Superior.

We are Michigan soul-sisters you and I. I love that frigid lake. The series I'm currently writing is basically an ode to her.
Your favorite Michigan Hideaway:    My no-electricity, wood-burning, gas-lit, outhouse-sporting cabin in Grand Marais.
Paradise or Hell:    Paradise.  I have tried my best to avoid visiting Hell and, if I ever felt the urge, it’s in the wrong peninsula anyway.What’s your favorite Michigan Highway :  H-58.

Portions of H-58 are left unplowed during the winter and used as a snowmobile trail.

Favorite Michigan tourist activity:   Agate-picking on Lake Superior or salmon fishing on the Two-Hearted River.  It’s pretty much a draw.

I almost don't feel right putting this out there because I'm greedy and want to keep the spot all to myself but my favorite place in the world is where those two waterways meet.

Your favorite book that showcases Michigan:  Please don’t make me choose.  I’m a sucker for every book written about the history of Michigan.  Hmmm….  My favorite?  I guess it would have to be the short little ditty with funny Michigan outhouse stories.  And the title escapes me.  Makes me wonder what that choice says about me.
I don't know but once you remember the title let me know it sounds like it's right up my alley - not sure what that says about me either. 

 

What’s next for you?
 I’m thinking, if I want to be published before I’m dead, I’d better get moving.  I plan on dragging out my last four manuscripts for rewriting, revisions, and polishing before trying out the ePublishing market.  Should be fun.  At my age, it’ll be like writing a whole new book.

Hey judging by the excerpt I bet your books are fun and well-written. If you're looking for a beta reader, look no further!

How can we keep up with you?

  My email.  If you promise you’re not one of those Facebook stalkers who keep propositioning me in broken English, Kelli has my email address.  Although the broken-English propositions ARE rather funny, now that I think about it….  :o) 

 

Cindy, thank you so much for hanging out with me here today! You were such fun!
Leave a note or question for either Cindy or I in the comments. I can get back to you today and Cindy will probably get back to you when she's home from her amazing Michigan vacation. The lucky duck.

Either way come back tomorrow and meet the next Michigan Author on the roster.