Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Always A Marine: Meet Author Heather Long



My pleasure today to introduce you to Heather Long. Please note giveaway opportunities at the end of this post.

Author Interview:


1. How did you get started writing Military Romance?


It was actually rather organic with a side of normal.  A friend of mine suggested that I had a great voice for the 1Night Stand line from Decadent. She encouraged me to write a story for it and after a little bit of research (and reading more than a few of the awesome books in the 1NS line), I decided to go for it. I’d always wanted to write a military hero and that seemed to be the perfect marriage of testing whether I could write a short and writing the kind of hero I’d always wanted to. I sat down over the Friday, Saturday, Sunday weekend of Thanksgiving and Luke Dexter and then men of his unit were born.

2. What makes a military hero special? Different from other alpha male heroes?

Most Alpha heroes are driven by circumstance or through events, but military heroes actually just step up. They are the average guy, the high school jock, the nerd, or the outsider who doesn’t fit into the social pack. These guys volunteer, they enlist, and they commit years of their life to serving their country. No matter what their differences outside of that service, they become brothers (or sisters), and they walk into some of the most dangerous situations in the world without regard for their own safety because they are defending their country or their way of life.

3. Do you base any of the characters in your books on real people you know/have known?

Yes. Fortunately, I’ve met a number of brave and courageous individuals that allow me an insight into that world.

4. Do you write other genres? Or want to? Or have in the past? (Optional question - don't answer if you don't want to...)

I write in multiple genres including paranormal western romance (think paranormal cowboys in 1850 Texas), romantic suspense, erotic romance, and paranormal erotic romance.

5. What new book are you working on now? In this series? New series?

Currently I am working on a novel that will follow-up Retreat Hell! She Just Got Here.  I wasn’t done with the characters of Jazz, Logan, and Zach. Fortunately, my editor liked my proposal so hopefully we’ll be chatting about that soon.

6. What kind of research do you do for your books? Have you read non-fiction military history?

I talk to experts in their fields whether its munitions, investigators, or active military to make sure I get the details right. I’ve watched numerous documentaries, read non-fiction military history in order to give myself all the facts and then I build my story from there.

7. What percentage of your readers are now or have been in the military?

I have no idea. Honestly. I know I’ve heard from both active and former as well as the families of those who serve and they have been wonderfully encouraging.

8. What do you feel is the future of Military Romance?

I think it’s only going to grow. We live in an era where we’ve been at war for more than a decade overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq. We have an entire generation of children growing up with parents who are serving their country and military families who are serving by supporting their military family members. Unlike Vietnam, the public recognizes that our soldiers, Marines, airmen, and sailors need our support both abroad and at home.  Thankfully, we are supporting them and if even one person develops a deeper respect or understanding for what our Armed Forces go through by reading my books, I’ll be deeply proud to have been able to contribute. 



Title: Once Her Man, Always Her Man (Always a Marine, Book 1)
Author: Heather Long
Publisher: Decadent Publishing (1NS)
Length: 11,000 words
Genre(s): Contemporary Erotic Military Romance

Available at:

Reviews on Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13596947-once-her-man-always-her-man

Blurb:
Fulfilling a favor and executing a business plan, Luke Dexter arrived at Dallas’ Sybarite Club for a one-night stand. He never imagined that in the darkened club with bluesy strains of jazz playing he’d come face to face with the woman he left behind a decade earlier.

Rebecca Rainier fell in love with Luke Dexter in high school and was crushed when he dumped her to join the Marines after 9/11. Now, waiting for a date her best friend and business partner set up, she’s unprepared when Luke walks in.

Can Luke and Rebecca bridge the pain of a decade long abandonment in one cold Texas night? 

Excerpt:
Luke’s chest hurt, but he braced himself against it. Shock wrinkled the line between her brows, the emotion far more brutal to him than a firefight in Kandahar or Kabul. She didn’t turn to look at him. But her reflection in the mirror didn’t soften. The familiar, flirtatious smile fled from the cool, firm line of her lips. Color drained from the face of the woman who shifted on the bar stool. Movement to his right caught his attention. A man approached, intent on her, but meeting Luke’s iron expression, the would-be interloper diverted to another table.

Satisfied, his attention returned to the girl—no, the woman—gazing at him, pain etching the softness of her lips. The memory of her lips got him through Paris Island. He’d thought about them, about her smile, every single, damn day.

“Hello, Luke.” Her voice poured over him like warm honey.

Life doesn’t always offer second chances….

“May I join you?” He nodded to the stool next to her.
“It’s a free country.” And just like that, she turned her back and the warm honey chilled, hardening over his chest.

“Thank you, ma’am.” He tacked the ma’am on as an afterthought. But the steel wrapped in her velvety voice jabbed his kidneys. Perching on the edge of the stool, he motioned to the bartender. “Two more of whatever the lady is having.”

She watched him from the mirror. Hungriness reflected in the gold flecked, tawny brown eyes, a perfect contrast to the tight jaw and stiff fingers wrapped around her wine glass. She tossed back a third of a glass like a shot of vodka.

A shot of vodka sounded like a great idea. But he needed his wits about him. IEDs laced the battlefield in front of him and patience and procedure and about eighty-five pounds of protective gear weren’t handy. But the trick to survival was to examine what was right in front of him and to react to it. He could do that in the field, he could do that with her. It was what he did best.

After the bartender served the drinks and took his credit card, Luke sat sideways, intentionally brushing his leg against hers. She didn’t recoil—exactly—but did shift away after a few seconds.

Definitely treading in dangerous waters.


About the Author:
Heather Long lives in Texas with her family and their menagerie of animals. As a child, Heather skipped picture books and enjoyed the Harlequin romance novels by Penny Jordan and Nora Roberts that her grandmother read to her. Heather believes that laughter is as important to life as breathing and that the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus are very real. In the meanwhile, she is hard at work on her next novel.

http://www.heatherlong.net
Http://www.facebook.com/HeatherLongAuthor
http://www.twitter.com/HVLong


Please post your comment here to be entered in the drawing for free books.


For more chances to win, please follow the CBLS Blog Hop here.


Thanks, Heather, for joining us today. Good luck, readers, with the contest and giveaways!


Sharon Hamilton

Life is one fool thing after another.
Love is two fool things after each other.

Heavenly Lover ** Underworld Lover ** Honeymoon Bite available now at Amazon/B&N
Accidental SEAL coming June 23! 

2 comments:

  1. I didn't see any place with the Rafflecopter to leave a comment. This book sounds amazing. Can't wait to read it. Thanks for the giveaway.

    e.balinski(at)att(dot)net

    ReplyDelete
  2. Joanne, got you entered. Sorry.

    Sharon

    ReplyDelete