Books, Chocolate and Wine with Emma Kaye

Today’s guest at Books, Chocolate and Wine is Emma Kaye. Emma and I met at our first New Jersey Romance Writer’s conference. As nervous newbies we stuck together and found we had a lot in common. Even our genre. So much for thinking we were unique, right! While I’m more the medieval time travel buff, her expertise is with Regency and contemporary times. We’ve stayed close serving on the NJRW board together and even writing short stories together. She sat down and discussed all sorts of things. I hope you get to know her. I know you’ll enjoy her new story for The Wild Rose Press.

Hi, Ruth! Thanks for having me here today.

Tell us about For You.

I wrote FOR YOU in response to a submission call from my publisher. Each story in the series includes those tiny candy hearts with the cute sayings on them that are so popular around Valentine’s Day. The story starts on Valentine’s Day with the hero, Drew, going through a package of hearts and thinking about how the sayings all mock his single state. One of his best friends is a deliriously happy newlywed, and Drew is wishing he could find someone to love like that. He gets his wish when an accident sends him back in time to meet Julia. Only problem is he looks exactly like her recently murdered husband—A man she didn’t trust or love. Can Drew convince Julia he’s nothing like her former husband?

Tell us how you build your characters? Do you write character bios? Cast the characters?

I start with a rough idea of the plot and that leads me to the characters. Once I have a basic idea of what’s going to happen, I start to get a feeling for how the characters will feel/react to their situation. Then I do the fun part—I search online for photo inspiration. This takes much longer than it should. For some reason, I get distracted. (Mostly by pictures of Jensen Ackles) Once I have a picture that fits my fancy, I get out a notebook and scribble down notes on the characters. I ask a lot of questions—Why was Julia afraid of her husband? How does Drew know there’s something wrong with Julia’s finances? A lot of these notes never end up in the story, but they help me know my characters.

Are you a plotter or a panster?

I’m a plotter. One of my favorite parts of writing is coming up with an outline of the story. I don’t necessarily follow that outline to the letter (sometimes my characters surprise me!) but I like to have it to start. If a character takes me in a different direction, I go with it and adjust the outline to fit.

What attracted you to writing time travel romance? 

I love having a character thrown into a different time. Maybe it’s the fish out of water idea? I love the blend of an historical setting as seen by a character with a modern viewpoint. It makes for interesting interactions and is great fun.

What are your favorite scenes to write?

I love writing the ending. It’s so satisfying. After everything the couple goes through during the story, I love seeing them on the way to their happily ever after.

What do you want your readers to take away with them after reading the story?

I want them to have that happy, satisfied feeling that makes them sigh.

Do you have any words of advice or encouragement for aspiring authors?

Keep going. If you enjoy writing, keep at it.

What are you working on next?

I’m writing a novella about a woman searching for a magickal book she’d hidden in the small town of Havenport, Rhode Island. While there, she runs into the man she loves. A man who didn’t return her love—until now. She has to protect the book of magick, while trying to figure out if the man’s love is real or the result of a spell.

Do you have an ebook reader? If so, which one?

I have a Kindle Voyager and love it, though I still enjoy picking up a paperback.

What are you reading now?

I’ve been reading the other books in the Candy Hearts Series and enjoying them all. There are stories in all genres, so there’s a little something for everyone. Plus they’re on the shorter side, so it’s fun to pick one up knowing it will be a quick read. Other than that, I’m also reading The Hunger Games again. I’d read the first two books, but never read the third so I figured I better start over again to remind myself what happens.

Can she trust a man who looks so much like her deceased husband, who she never loved?

For You

It's Valentine's Day, and candy heart sayings mock Drew Engledown's lonely state. He wants more in his life than work, but hasn't met anyone he can imagine spending his life with. When he puts his own life at risk to save a friend, he's sent back in time to Regency London and mistaken for a murdered earl. Has he been given a chance at love with the earl's beautiful widow, or will he suffer the same fate as the previous lord?

When her husband's heir lays claim to all she once owned, Lady Engledown is left nearly destitute. So she doesn't know whether to be relieved or angry when the earl returns but claims he's not her husband. Could he be telling the truth, or is he toying with her? She doesn't know what to think of this man who is so different from the husband she never loved. Can they find happiness together, or will this man she comes to love leave her worse off than before?

Buy Links:

All Romance eBooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-foryou-1937601-160.html
Amazon: http://amzn.com/B018L2A8LY
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/for-you-emma-kaye/1123057356?ean=2940157730871
iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/for-you/id1067612965?mt=11
Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/for-you-12
TWRP: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=195&products_id=6577

For You is part of The Wild Rose Press’ Candy Hearts Series.

Excerpt from For You

She took a delicate sip of the chilled liquid when they paused near the doors to the terrace. They were closed against the cool night, but a draft kept the over-warm air of the crowded ballroom at bay.

He pulled at his cravat, something he’d done repeatedly throughout the night, and let out his breath in a gush. “That’s better. It’s hot as an oven in here.”

She placed a hand over his to get him to release his collar. “We’ll stay but a few more hours. You may untie your cravat the moment we are out of sight within our carriage. Until then, please refrain from disrobing in public.”

He grinned and pulled her closer to his side than was seemly. “You’re just dying to get me naked, I see.”

She gasped. Heat flooded her face. “I meant no such thing. I—”

Drew laughed. “Sorry, sorry. I couldn’t resist. Modern humor.”

She flipped open her fan, waving it before her face in an attempt to hide a bit of the blush that had surely turned her face a brilliant shade of red. For a moment, she’d thought him capable of reading her mind, for thoughts of him naked had indeed entered her head.

***

Emma Kaye is married to her high school sweetheart and has two beautiful kids that she spends an insane amount of time driving around New Jersey. Before ballet and Scouts entered her life, she decided to try writing one of those romances she loved to read and discovered a new passion. She’s been writing ever since. Add in a hyper dog and an extremely patient cat and she's living her own happily ever after while making her characters work hard to reach theirs.

You can contact Emma at:

Website: www.emma-kaye.com

Email: emmakayewrites@hotmail.com

Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/emmakayewrites

Twitter Page: www.twitter.com/emmakayewrites

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/emma-kaye

The Wild Rose Press: http://bit.ly/1l11ZCx

Amazon:  www.amazon.com/author/emmakaye

Newsletter: Sign up on Emma's website: http://emma-kaye.com