What a fantastic lineup we have today! Critique partners Joanne Rock and Catherine
Mann stop by for a visit while they discuss their September releases- GUARDIAN
for Cathy and FULL SURRENDER for Joanne.
Tell me how you got started writing military
romance? How many books have you written?
CM: Hi Sharon! Thanks so much for having us here today to visit on your
blog! In answer to your questions,
my hubby served in the Air Force for over 20 years as an aviator. So USAF heroes are a natural fit for
me. I’ve written over fifty novels
for Harlequin, Berkley and Sourcebooks.
JR: I started penning military heroes when
Harlequin Blaze began their popular “Uniformly Hot!” miniseries. I’d been a
little in love with Cathy’s military heroes for years and thought I’d try
writing one of my own. She has been a wonderful resource for me. I’ve written
over sixty books in a variety of formats counting digital releases (like
Harlequin Historical “Undone” stories) and novellas.
Why do you think these Alpha military heroes (and
heroines) are so popular? What makes them heroes?
CM: Alpha military heroes are the go-to guys in a
crisis, the ultimate protectors.
Yes, they can be a bit arrogant with their swagger and confidence needed
for extreme circumstances. But
that makes finding the marshmallow side of any alpha hero oh-so rewarding and heart
melting!
JR: I think military heroes have experienced a real
surge of interest as so many of our friends, family and neighbors have spent
time in deployments in the last decade. They are heroes because of their
selfless service, and reading their stories is a way to celebrate all they do
for us.
How do you compliment the heroine to a strong alpha
military guy? Do you write them strong? Compliant? Kick-butt?
CM: Absolutely the heroine must be equally as
strong, but her strengths may be in other arenas. Dare I say it…?
They complete each other.
JR: What Cathy said! I like looking at character
profiles like horoscopes, enneagrams or
even Myers-Briggs
personality indicators to remind myself what “types” of characters complement
others. I find it fun to play with those types to see how one bolsters the
other.
Do you like writing in series, or single?
CM: I
definitely lean toward writing connected stories. That’s also another reason it’s awesome to have such a
stellar long-time critique partner like Joanne. She knows all my stories and all my characters. While I don’t expect her to remember
every detail, it’s very helpful that she’s familiar with the “world” I’ve built
in a series. Joanne is a
brainstorming maven and I’ve been the lucky recipient in many a looooong phone
conversation!
JR: I don’t have the same long standing connections
in my books that Cathy has created, mostly because I am continually charmed by
new kinds of stories (suspense one day, a time travel another) and that makes
longer series more difficult to pull off. But I do love connected books. FULL
SURRENDER is loosely linked to several other stories following the Murphy
brothers.
Who is your favorite character you've created? Why?
CM:
How about I choose some of my favorite couples in Joanne’s books? I especially enjoyed the chemistry
between Navy Lt. Brad Riddock (explosives expert) and Nikki Thornton (professor
chronicling her aunt’s erotic diaries) in HIGHLY CHARGED. And Joanne’s book UNDER WRAPS has awesomely
crafted secondary characters as well – a rocking awesome strength Joanne brings
to her stories.
JR: How cool for you to remember those secondary
characters in Under Wraps, Cathy!! I
particularly enjoyed Cathy’s risk-taking “Postal” Ruznick and Dr. Grace Marie
Lanier in BLAZE OF GLORY
because of the way they balanced each other out (and I love a hero who’s “on
the edge”). But I also loved Kate Harper in HIS THIRTY-DAY FIANCEE,
who scales the hero’s mansion walls for a photo op. I wish I’d written this
gutsy heroine with so much at stake!
If you could have a date with one of your
characters, which one would it be and why? Where would you go?
CM:
I’m going to flip the question again and choose one of Joanne’s
heroes. I adore Lucian Barrett in
her medieval historical THE
WEDDING KNIGHT. I fell in love with that hero from the first line and
adored him through every stage of his character’s healing and redemption. I would go ANYWHERE with a man like
him. J
JR: Oh this is fun. I’m going to ask for Hugh
Franco from HOT ZONE
because underneath the darkly magnetic charm, he is so selfless and dedicated.
This is true of so many of Cathy’s heroes, but with Hugh, I felt like we got a
glimpse of his heart early on and I loved that.
Tell us something about you that most people
wouldn't know or guess about you?
JR: I am a soft spoken girly-girl who likes pretty
things, but I am married to an earthy man’s man who is an extroverted, noisy
sports fanatic. He is the most surprising thing about me!
CM: I
love to swim – pool, river, ocean - but I do not dive. The thought of plunging head first into
the water freaks me out. And while Joanne says there’s nothing surprising about
her, I’m not letting her off the hook that easily! I know that on vacation she once trekked a narrow rocky path
along a cliff wall behind a waterfall.
She’s FAR more daring than I am!
JR: Only because
my husband coerced me into it!!
What have you read recently that you enjoyed?
JR: I adored Winnie Griggs’ HANDPICKED HUSBAND (HQ
Love Inspired Historical, September 2012) and Maya Rodale’s THE TATTOOED DUKE
(Avon, Feb. 2012).
CM: One of my favorite parts of being an author is
getting ARCs (Advance Reader Copies) from other authors. Over past few months, I lucked into
three really wonderful ARCs I highly recommend:
Julie Walker’s HELL ON WHEELS(Aug 2012), the launch
book for her “Black Knights, Inc. series.
Virginia Kantra’s first “Dare Island” book,
CAROLINA HOME (July 2012).
And just this week I read the latest in Holly
Jacob’s “Everything But…” series called EVERYTHING BUT A DOG (Dec 2012).
What are you working on now?
CM:
LOL! Today, I’m a bit
scattered, juggling a bunch of different projects at once – plotting a synopsis
for my next “Alpha Brotherhood” book, writing my next “Elite Force” PJ book,
and working on a super-secret project I’m not talking about yet. ;)
JR: I’ll let you in on a not-so-super-secret
tidbit… Cathy’s “scattered” days are more productive than most people’s average
days! She is a creative force to be reckoned with and I love to hold out a net
and catch the ideas that spark whenever she’s around. As for me, I revised a
Blaze (with Cathy’s final tweaking help!) and submitted it to my editor for
release next June. It’s a bit different for me because while the hero’s point
of view is told in traditional third person, we get to meet the heroine via
first person. It was really fun to write.
CM: And Joanne’s latest Blaze was really fun to
read! How cool that I get an
advance peek at her stories and can call that “work”! (Okay, I know technically I already answered this question
but I just had to pop in after Joanne’s last post.)
Thanks again for having us here, Sharon! Your questions were great fun! And for the folks visiting today,
what’s something we would be surprised to learn about YOU? One lucky commenter will be chosen at
random to win a copy of both FULL SURRENDER by Joanne Rock and GUARDIAN by
Catherine Mann.
Ladies, it's been my complete pleasure having you here today. I'm a gushing fan, and I agree these military alpha heroes are the best of the best. I share your joy that we get to write and celebrate these wonderful men and women.
Please be sure to leave your comments below with your coded email so you can win these fantastic reads. And let's show these ladies some love!
Excerpt: GUARDIAN: http://www.catherinemann.com/guardian/
Available at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
Available at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
USA Today bestselling
author Catherine Mann writes military romantic suspense for Berkley and
Sourcebooks, as well as steamy romances for Harlequin. A RITA Award winner (and six time RITA
nominee) Catherine lives in the Florida panhandle with her flyboy husband,
their kids and a menagerie of shelter pets.
Joanne Rock writes contemporary romance and medieval historicals for a variety
of Harlequin lines. She looks forward to the release of a Young Adult romance
series in the summer of 2013 under the pseudonym JK Rock with her
sister-in-law, Karen. When she’s not reading or writing, Joanne is on the
bleachers cheering for one of her three sons who are continuously involved in
sports too numerous to mention.
CONTACT:
Joanne Rock
Catherine Mann
