Osiyo~

Welcome one and all! Grab a beverage of choice, something sweet and sinful. 😉 Take a comfy seat for another, or maybe it’s your first first, spin in the Round Pen.

I’m thrilled to welcome my wonderfully talented guest today, Amber Daulton, who is sharing her book Timeless Beginnings with us!

Please show ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Amber some real Ranch love!

Before I get to the nosy part of this interview, tell us a bit about you.

AD: For me, writing is the fruit to happiness. I try to live my life by that one belief but I’m not normally so Zen. I’m a fan of contemporary, paranormal and historical romance novels alike and I can’t get enough of feisty heroines and alpha heroes. My mind is a wonderland of adventure, laughter and awesome ways of kicking a guy when he’s down. I probably wouldn’t be too sane without my computer and notebooks. What can I do when there are people jabbering away in my head and it’s hard to shut them up? Write! Nothing else works.

CR: Okay, here we go! Although I have an awesome office upstairs that hubby created for me last winter, my favorite writing area is a super comfy chair in the corner of my living room. What does your writing space look like?

AD: I have an awesome office. Bookshelves cover every wall and I have cute little decorations like stuffed animals, shiny wall hangings and butterflies everywhere. My professional-looking stained desk somehow became horribly scratched up a few years ago when my husband and I moved to our new house so my hubby sanded it down and I painted it an off-white color and drew ivy and flowers all over the legs. It’s very whimsical now and fits great with my frou-frou decorations.

CR: I love the sound of your office and the desk is adorable! I can see why you love it.

For a lot of writers it’s a life-altering event coming up with titles and character names. Others it comes as naturally as breathing. Which is it for you?

AD: Deciding on titles is a slight hassle (I usually pick titles with double meanings or a play on words) but coming up with names is such a chore. The names have to fit with the characters I see in my mind perfectly or I can’t use them. I usually choose the names based on their personality, physical characteristics, family dynamics/heritage, the time period of the novel or just what I find sexy! I’m very picky (especially with the heroine and hero) and I sometimes spend hours, if not days, just scouring through baby name books and websites for the best names.

CR: What advice would you offer aspiring and new writers?

AD: Make friends with other authors and readers via social media. Don’t be shy. Start a blog even if you aren’t published and join blog tours. A tour is a great way to get a free ebook as long as you write a review and post it on your blog. The author’s readers will then come to your blog to read the review. They’ll see YOUR name. And that’s what you want. To get your name out there.

Just keep trying. I know it sounds cliché but there’s nothing else to do. If you don’t try, you won’t succeed. Period. Keep your hopes high, take rejection letters in stride and if a publisher or editor gives you feedback on why he/she rejected your work, listen to their feedback. They know what they’re talking about.

CR: The constant shift of the industry makes me often scratch my head and ask ‘what next?’ So, what do you think it takes to be a successful author at the moment?

AD: The publishing world is in an uproar and I doubt it will smooth out anytime soon. To be successful, you need to know your audience and market your genre to those people. A reader who loves paranormal romance probably won’t be interested in a historical novel and vise-versa. You gotta do a ton of promoting, whether you pick the free options or the ones that cost a fee. Most publishers offer very little assistance so the responsibility falls to the author. It can be a nightmare but it’s something we authors have to deal with and struggle through. After all, if the reader doesn’t know your name, he or she won’t buy your book.

CR: Great answer, Amber. So, who would you like to meet in the publishing industry- dead or alive- and why?

AD: I’d love to meet a few of my favorite authors. Sherrilyn Kenyon and Christine Feehan are the first ones that come to mind.

CR: It’s time to get personal. Bwahaha. LOL I’ll ask some questions and you answer them in one word. 😆

Favorite animal? – Cat

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? – Fall

Favorite food? – Chinese

CR: Okay, love this. Well done! 🙂

What are you working on now?

AD: I’m in the process of editing the fourth book in my Arresting Onyx series. The sexy, dirty-talking contemporary romance series will span five books with a standalone HEA for each rough-and-tumble hero and their spunky heroines. The first book is out on call and I hope to have it picked up soon.

After I finish Arresting Onyx, I plan to edit a set of currently unpublished vampire novels. My poor vamps need a grueling overhaul but I’m looking forward to the task ahead.

CR: What are you sharing today?

Timeless Beginnings

Blurb

Leonora Harris fled her newly-wedded husband’s home in Georgian England, 1725, and took shelter in a cave during a rainstorm. She woke up in a cold, barren land and a handsome stranger with a mechanical carriage offered her shelter.

Undercover American operative Rodger Ramsey never expected to find a runaway bride in the magnificent Salar de Uyuni. Assigned to Bolivia to investigate Communist activities, he just wrapped up his two-year mission in 1963 and followed his heart to the salt flats one last time.

Sparks flew and attraction sizzled. The lost, stubborn woman kicked his protective instincts into overdrive. Rodger took her home with him, determined to help her before he returned to the States, and Leonora flourished under his guidance. Their hearts intertwined. He wanted her, needed her, but could he truly love a woman who believed she jumped two hundred years in time?

Will they find a way to stay together, despite the obstacles between them, or will Leonora survive in this strange new world alone?

(Author’s Note – Timeless Beginnings is a standalone prequel to Timeless Honor, another time travel story that came out last year. The books don’t need to be read back-to-back in order to enjoy or understand them.)

Excerpt

“I’ll do or say whatever you wish, illegal or not.” Leonora steeled her spine as the words tore up her throat. “I thought you trusted me. What can I do to earn it?”

Rodger ate up the distance between them with three long strides and shackled her wrist in his large hand like a manacle. She stumbled toward him. Tension permeated the air around him in waves of red-hot heat.

“Have you heard of the CIA, Leonora? The Central Intelligence Agency?”

“No, I have no idea what that is.”

“What can you tell me about the communist activities and alliances in this country?”

“Nothing. I don’t know. What kind of questions are these? What are you talking about?”

His head tilted to one side and his lips thinned. Rodger stared at her with a long, hard gaze even as she squirmed, the steel in her spine gone. Stress lined his face and the tendon in his neck throbbed against his skin like a tic. Minutes passed, or maybe just seconds, and air whizzed out through his nostrils. The anger in his face seemed to drain and he somehow looked older.

“How can this be? You told me the truth about everything.” He stepped back and stroked his fingers up her arm. “Though you squirmed under my gaze, you did so after you answered me and only because I intimidated you. You didn’t once respond with a typical facial or verbal nuance to indicate you lied. I feel the truth of your words in my gut and in my soul.”

“I haven’t once lied to you.”

“I just—I don’t understand. This is so unbelievable. I wish you could provide me with some kind of undeniable proof you’re from the past.”

“As do I, Rodger.”

“If we do this, you’ll stay with me until I decide otherwise. I’ll protect you. I’ll kiss you and touch you. You should know that right away. I respect you, Leonora, but I’m not a strong enough man to deny my desire for you indefinitely. I won’t bear my frustration and keep my distance anymore. Do you understand what I mean? I need to lay with you, again and again, with no regrets. Do you accept those terms?”

Rich honey poured into his every word, every syllable, and wrapped around her like a sweet promise. Blood thundered in Leonora’s ears and her lungs expanded with air to the point they might burst. The longing in his eyes scorched her.

Caught like a fly in a spider’s web, she nodded, her voice gone.

“Tell me, dearest. I need to hear the words.”

“Yes. Yes, I accept.”

***

Where can we find your books?

You can find Timeless Beginnings here:

Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/Timeless-Beginnings-Amber-Daulton-ebook/dp/B01IYI0AJK#nav-subnav

B&N:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1124169996?ean=9781535362054

Goodreads – www.goodreads.com/book/show/30638898-timeless-beginnings

I also have eight other stories currently available. They can be found on Amazon, B&N, ARe, Smashwords and Kobo and range between sweet (no sex/sex behind closed doors/mild petting) to spicy (explicit scenes with dirty language).

If you’re interested in the sweet variety, check out: Forever Winter (historical), Lightning over Bennett Ranch (western) and Cinderella’s Enchanted Night (cont. romance with a magical twist).

Or the spicy: A Hero’s Heart (romantic-suspense), Mistletoe in the City (new adult), Timeless Honor (time travel), My Valentine Adventure (cont. romance), and Calla’s Summer Fantasy (erotic ménage à trois).

Also, check out the Cinderella Treasure Trove. It’s FREE on Amazon and at other retailers. Last year, 15 romance authors, including myself, formed the Glass Slipper Sisters and we produced an excerpt book to showcase snippets of our Cinderella-themed stories. Recipes and party ideas are also part of the freebie.

Where will you be next?

I love to hear from readers, so please feel free to follow or contact me below:

Blogsite – http://amberdaultonauthor.blogspot.com/

Facebook Author Page – www.facebook.com/amber.daulton.author

Twitter – https://twitter.com/AmberDaulton1

Pinterest – http://pinterest.com/amberdaulton5/

Goodreads – http://goodreads.com/author/show/6624921.Amber_Daulton

Amazon Author Page – http://amzn.to/14JoZff

LinkedIn – www.linkedin.com/pub/amber-daulton/87/538/368 

Google Plus – plus.google.com/u/0/110099048961325762869/about/p/pub

I’d love to give a free ecopy of Timeless Beginnings to one lucky commenter.

Question: Timeless Beginnings is a time-travel/historical/contemporary romance book. Whew! What a mouthful! Do you prefer to read books that fit into one single genre or into multiples?

Thank you so much for playing along, Amber! Wishing you much luck with your book and writing. I hope you’ll come visit again one day.

Dodadagohvi~