Tell us about yourself.:
I’m a third generation Colorado native with no relation to the coffee bunch, so I don’t get free coffee. I worked as an operating room nurse in several ORs in the Denver Metro Area for most of my career. I love ballroom dancing, and I’ve gone to several competitions. I was an art major in college before discovering I couldn’t support myself and liked to eat too much to be a real life artist, so I switched to nursing. I own a horse who’s 21 years old and basically a pasture pet, and two couch potato cats.
I live in Arvada, Colorado, and I'm a multiple award-winning author of Legacy of Secrets, Finding Alex, The Woman He Used to Know, and the Annie Collins Mystery Series.
I love mysteries, suspense, romance, and any well written book. I write my mystery series from the perspective of Annie Collins an OR nurse, and I rely on my love of suspense and romance to writer my standalone romantic suspense novels.
I like stories about strong women and interesting men and my theory is, if you don’t like life as it is, write a different ending.
Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up in a suburb of Denver, CO, the oldest of three daughters. My two sisters were quite popular throughout school, and I was not. Writing and reading made life more enjoyable. I could imagine a different life for myself, be a more confident, self-assured person than I was in real life.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I spend probably far too much time thinking about my characters and their story, to the point that they become very real for me and often direct the way the story is told. When the urge hits, I sit down and often write for hours. Some days I don’t write at all.
I have found music inspires a lot for me. Whenever I hear Santana’s Samba Pa’ Ti, I think of Angel Cisneros, the male lead in my mystery series. It just fits him, smooth, seductive, and Latino. P!nk’s Try describes my main character and narrator of the mystery series and Annie’s relationship with men.
Music also inspires scenes and moods for different stories. Overheard conversations spark ideas and plots or characters often are the result of certain settings in Colorado.
What authors have influenced you?
I grew up in a suburb of Denver, CO, the oldest of three daughters. My two sisters were quite popular throughout school, and I was not. Writing and reading made life more enjoyable. I could imagine a different life for myself, be a more confident, self-assured person than I was in real life.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write what you love, then find people who like the genre you're writing and listen to their feedback. Keep writing and learning and your ability to write will grow and become better.
What is the best advice you have ever been given?
Get help and don’t be afraid of constructive criticism. Beta readers and editors are priceless because they help you make your writing better and we all need that feedback. Authors are too close to their work to see the flaws. If you have people who will tell you, kindly and supportively, what’s wrong—that’s priceless and will help you avoid major problems.
What are you reading now?
Lisa Gardener's DD Warren series, Isabel Jordan's very funny romance series, Anne Frasier's Jude Fontaine series, and many of Harlan Coben's books
What’s your biggest weakness?
I can't outline to save my soul. I think if I could, it'd make writing a book easier, but the story has to come to me in pieces. It often requires lots of revising and editing, but that's how I work.
What is your favorite book of all time?
That's a hard one to answer. I love classics like Jane Austin's books. I loved Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier. And these days I'm wowed by Tana French's Dublin Murder Squad series and Anne Frasier's Jude Fontaine series. But there are so many more authors I love, it's hard to pick.
When you’re not writing, how do you like to spend your time?
I ballroom dance and have been to several competitions, which require lots of work. I read, voraciously, and before COVID struck, I loved to travel. I hope to get back to that one of these days.
Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?
Wuthering Heights. It appealed to my sense of romance and drama and the darkness and angst of love.
What has inspired you and your writing style?
I love a good mystery, crime, or suspense novel. And I also like some romance in it, so those genres are a big influence on what I write.
What are you working on now?
I will be launching a new book in the fall titled The Woman He Used to Know. It's romantic suspense and a crime novel all rolled into one. On the back burner are four works in progress (WIPs). Not sure which one will win the race to publication.
What is your favorite method for promoting your work?
I love Instagram, it's friendly and there are many authors, reviewers, and readers on it. I also love book fairs and bookclubs because I get to meet readers in person.
What’s next for you as a writer?
For me, what's next is to figure out which of the four WIPs will decide it wants to be finished.
How well do you work under pressure?
I'm used to working under pressure, I learned that as an OR nurse and a nurse editor with deadlines to meet. So pressure for me can be a very good thing.
How do you decide what tone to use with a particular piece of writing?
If I'm writing first person from a woman's point of view then it's more about feelings and intuition and using that to solve a mystery, whereas with a male lead, it's often piecing together facts and solving a puzzle. I like first person, but it does limit you, so writing as a narrator telling the story from the perspective of the main characters works well for me.
If you could share one thing with your fans, what would that be?
I’d like readers to be entertained by the plot and love the characters for their strengths and their struggles. I’d like them to identify with the women and fall in love with the men. I want readers to feel as if these characters are real people and I want readers to want to hear more about them.
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