The Call with Lauren H Brandenburg

I knew I wanted an agent who was more than business. It had to be personal. Because writing is personal. That’s why I totally stalked Julie Gwinn. Her online presence revealed her love of the craft and her authors. I researched her, read bio’s, followed her on social media, and even wore an Ohio State sweatshirt the first time I met her, hoping she would pay a bit more attention to the person in the room with a shared a mutual support for OSU football.  At the time, Julie was president of the Middle Tennessee chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers. I had never attended a meeting before or any type of writer’s group for that matter. But she was going to be there, and I knew I had to meet her. I don’t know exactly what I was hoping to get from our first encounter as I had already indie-pubbed three middle grades and had found my niche in the homeschool market. I guess I just knew I needed an agent to take my writing to the next level, to help me sort my thoughts, add a wrung to my invisible ladder of literary expectations. Because at the core, my personality was bent towards the structure a traditional publisher would bring, and I couldn’t get there on my own.  But it wasn’t until a year or so later, after many chapter meetings, shared conversations, and a publishing company reaching out to me that I knew it was time to make the ask. I needed help and Julie was willing. However, I didn’t sign with her. Through a series of events and connections, I signed with a family friend – a fabulous agent with quite a few big names under his belt. But six months in, next to no communication, and feeling super uncomfortable in asking for updates, I remembered why I had sought out Julie in the first place. It had to be personal. With the blessing of the agent, I had another conversation with Julie. Her words: “I believe in you. It doesn’t matter what you write. I believe in you. I always have.” And with forgiveness and grace for ditching her, she signed me, and I have never looked back.  It has to be personal. Julie knows me and my writing. She knows the ins and outs of my life that affect not only the words that go on paper but the highs and lows in my marketing. She also knows when it’s time to refocus, and in my case rebrand. I had an idea, but in my mind, it wasn’t time. There were other books to write. But Julie, knowing the industry and knowing what I needed to get what my heart longed for – the coveted traditional contract – encouraged me to write what would become my dearest work, the story that helped me find my voice – The Death of Mungo Blackwell. In October of 2018, I signed with Lion Hudson. With Julie Gwinn, it is personal. And I am so thankful that she knows me not only as a writer but as her friend.  The Marriage of Innis Wilkinson The Death of Mungo Blackwell

About Lauren H. Brandenburg:

Lauren H. Brandenburg is a mentor, speaker, and author who happily blurs the lines between traditional genres in both middle grade and humorous family fiction. She has currently written six of the ten books in The Books of the Gardener series — Orlo: The Chosen (#4) was a finalist for the Selah Award middle grade novel of the year. The Death of Mungo Blackwell, a humorous family fiction (Lion Hudson publishing) is a finalist for The People's Book Prize in the United Kingdom as well as an American Christian Fiction Writer's Carol Award Finalist in Contemporary Fiction. Lauren is a former junior high and high school English teacher who stepped away from her profession to raise and homeschool her two children. She currently lives with her husband, Jamie, and their two children in a lovely little town just south of Nashville, Tennessee where they eat and laugh a lot.

The Seymour Agency Q&A with Author Jen J. Danna

Seymour Agency: You recently launched your new series, the NYPD Negotiators, with EXIT STRATEGY. Why hostage negotiation?

Jen J. Danna: In LONE WOLF, the first book in the FBI K-9s series, I wrote a character who was a hostage negotiator. This guy had a really tough job as the middle man between the FBI, who wanted to close the case, and an armed gunman, who was holed up with his family. The negotiator was not only trying to save lives, but was also fighting to satisfy his law enforcement brethren, many of whom saw force as the best way to quickly get their man. This character really stuck with me, partly because the situation he had to deal with was different than anything I’d written before.

SA: How was it different?

JJD: In all my other police procedurals, the protagonist is always reacting to the initial situation, usually a murder, sometimes a natural disaster. I wanted to explore police work from the opposite, proactive angle. Yes, there’s a crisis in play, but the challenge is to save lives before they’re lost, to get the hostages out in one piece, and hopefully contain and arrest the person responsible.

SA: How did you develop Gemma Capello and her first responder family?

JJD: This was the first book I wrote solo, so it was fun to take advantage of my own family history to flesh out Gemma. Like me, her family hails from Siculiana in Sicily. Like me she lost a parent at a young age (though her loss is by very violent means). But I like writing ensemble pieces, where the characters appear throughout the series, so I crafted a family around her, a father and four brothers, who with only one exception are all NYPD officers in various branches of the department (the other brother joined the FDNY). In this way, she can work with at least one of them during her cases.

SA: How does her family play a part in EXIT STRATEGY?

JJD: When an alert goes out, interrupting a family celebration, Gemma, her father, the Chief of Special Operations, and her two older brothers respond. But when the hostage situation takes a turn for the worse and Gemma has to put herself at risk with the hostage taker, everything, including her life, will rest in the hands of her younger brother.

SA: What can we expect next from Gemma?

JJD: The second book in the series, SHOT CALLER, will release in summer 2021 from Kensington Books and Dreamscape Media. In it, Gemma is called to New York City’s notorious Rikers Island jail when a riot occurs and both correctional officers and inmates are taken hostage. It’s a contained but extremely volatile situation, and Gemma and her negotiating team are pulled in different directions as everyone tries to steer the crisis—from the inmates, to the staff at Rikers, to the city administrators that run the Department of Corrections, to the NYPD. She also has to balance her need to peacefully resolve the situation, which takes time, with the tactical team’s desire to go in and rapidly resolve the crisis with force. It’s a real nail biter. Then the third book in the series, LOCKDOWN, will follow in the summer of 2022.

About the Book, Exit Strategy:

In this taut new suspense series featuring NYPD detective Gemma Capello and her close-knit law enforcement family, a madman brings a halt to the heart of the city that never sleeps . . .

After her mother’s death during a bank robbery when she was a child, Gemma Capello grew up to become one of the NYPD’s elite hostage negotiators. In a family of cops, there’s rarely a day when a Capello isn’t facing down some form of threat. Still, despite their unpredictable schedules, they always find time for their annual family summer picnic. But this year, a sudden phone call changes everything. 

A heavily armed gunman has taken hostages at City Hall. Gemma races downtown to join the rest of the Hostage Negotiation Team as they scramble to identify the captives—fearing the mayor may be among them. But as they scramble for answers and struggle to gain control of the circumstances, it becomes clear that the mayor is at the center of it all, just not in the way they initially believed. 

With several lives on the line and a criminal who always seems to be one step ahead, Gemma is the only one able to connect with the suspect. Soon, she finds herself engaging in a battle of wits while enduring a battle of egos in the command center. With time running out and a mastermind who has proven he’ll do whatever it takes to get what he wants, Gemma risks it all—her career and her life—in a last-ditch effort to save the hostages. Now, she needs to figure out how to save herself . . .

About the Author, Jen J. Danna:  

A scientist specializing in infectious diseases, Jen J. Danna works as part of a dynamic research group at a cutting-edge Canadian university. However, her true passion lies in indulging her love of the mysterious through her writing. 

With Ann Vanderlaan, she writes two series. Under Danna and Vanderlaan, they craft suspenseful crime fiction with a realistic scientific edge. Their five Abbott and Lowell Forensic Mysteries include DEAD, WITHOUT A STONE TO TELL IT; NO ONE SEES ME ’TILL I FALL; A FLAME IN THE WIND OF DEATH; TWO PARTS BLOODY MURDER; and LAMENT THE COMMON BONES.

Under the joint pseudonym of Sara Driscoll, they write the FBI K-9s mysteries series, starring search-and-rescue team Meg Jennings and her black lab, Hawk. The series includes LONE WOLF and BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE, STORM RISING, and NO MAN’S LAND. The fifth book in the series, LEAVE NO TRACE, will release in January 2020.

Jen is also the author of the upcoming NYPD Negotiators thriller series, with the first book, EXIT STRATEGY, releasing in August 2020. The second book in the series, SHOT CALLER, will release in 2021, and the third book, LOCKDOWN, will release in 2022.

Jen lives near Toronto, Ontario with her husband, two daughters, and three rescued cats, and is a member of the Crime Writers of Canada.

You can reach her through the contact page on her website or by email at jenjdanna@gmail.com.

Social media links: Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT ON STACIE RAMEY AND AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT ON LYNNETTE AUSTIN!

Yes, two authors for the price of one! (Although we don't really charge anything so there you go).

Today let's welcome, Lynnette and Stacie to the blog! Welcome ladies!

LYNNETTE AUSTIN

 Author Bio:

I love to stand on the beach when a storm is brewing and watch the waves crash ashore. I love, love, love chocolate frozen custard, a bargain, anything by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, and sitting in a Starbucks reading and enjoying a skinny peppermint mocha. I grew up in Pennsylvania, accepted my first teaching job in New York, moved to wonderful Wyoming, then to sunny Florida. Now, I spend my days writing and split my time between the beaches of Florida and the mountains of northern Georgia. I tend to think of myself as a homebody, but I guess I must have a little vagabond in me because I feel at home and happy almost anywhere.

The Best Laid Wedding Plans blurb:

Reunited lovers, a crumbling plantation, and a big dream—The Best Laid Wedding Plans!

Georgia’s Low Country. Soft, summer nights, sweet tea sippin’ on back porches, fireflies twinklin’, and those Southern men with slow drawls and slower hands. Jenni Beth knows she can turn crumbling Magnolia House into a wedding destination, but when Cole, once the love of her life, returns, old hurts resurface.

Jenni Beth Beaumont left her broken heart behind when she took her dream job in Savannah. But after her brother's death, she returns home to help mend her parents' hearts as well as restore their beautiful but crumbling antebellum mansion. New dreams take shape as Jenni Beth sets to work replacing floors and fixing pipes to convert the family homestead into the perfect wedding destination. However, some folks in their small Southern town are determined to see her fail.
Cole Bryson was once the love of Jenni Beth's life, but the charming architectural salvager has plans of his own for the Beaumont family home. As the two butt heads, old turmoil is brought to the surface. Cole and Jenni Beth will have to work through some painful memories and tough realities before they can set their pasts aside and have a second chance at their own happily ever after.

Author Media Links

www.authorlynnetteaustin.com

https://twitter.com/LynnettAustin

https://www.facebook.com/Lynnette-Austin

http://hotwipssassychicks.blogspot.com

Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.com/romwriter/

STACIE RAMEY

Stacie Ramey learned to read at a very early age to escape the endless tormenting from her older siblings. Where the Wild Things Are was her first favorite book and she swore she’d only marry a man who could prove he had rumpus in his heart!

She attended the University of Florida, where she majored in communication sciences, and Penn State where she received a Master of Science degree in Speech Pathology. She also met her future husband at Penn State, who surprised her one day with all of the stuffed Wild Things’ characters, proving his worth.

She currently works with high school aged Autistic kids, introducing them to the literary worlds she grew up loving. When she’s not working or writing, she engages in Netflix wars with her children or beats her husband in Scrabble, all while watching the Florida Gators and Penn State Nittany Lions play (Go Gators).

She lives in Florida with her husband, children, and rescue dogs.

Her debut young adult novel THE SISTER PACT was released November 3, 2015 (Sourcebooks Fire). 

You can follow her on:

https://www.facebook.com/stacie.ramey

Twitter@stacieramey

http://www.stacieramey.com/index.html

THE SISTER PACT

Blurb from Amazon:

Who holds your secrets?

Allie is devastated when her sister commits suicide-and it's not just because she misses her. Allie feels betrayed. The two made a pact that they'd always be together, in life and in death, but Leah broke her promise and Allie needs to know why.

Her parents hover. Her friends try to support her. And Nick, sweet Nick, keeps calling and flirting. Their sympathy only intensifies her grief.

But the more she clings to Leah, the more secrets surface. Allie's not sure which is more distressing: discovering the truth behind her sister's death or facing her new reality without her.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT ON: JENNIFER FUSCO!

Welcome, Jennifer!

Jennifer Fusco is the author of FIGHTING FOR IT, The first in a sexy new series where the hard-hitters of Las Vegas's Stamina boxing gym are K.O.-ed by the women they never saw coming...

Jennifer loves writing hot alpha males, and strong female characters who are sexy, sassy, and careful with their heart. She lives in South Florida and spends what little free time she has going to the beach, walking her dog, Grissom, and watching her son's soccer games.

Chat with Jennifer on Facebook, or connect anytime on Twitter @jenniferafusco. For a full list of Jennifer's books, please visit her website: www.jennifer-fusco.com

Social media Links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JenniferAFusco

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorjenniferfusco

From Amazon:

After suffering a devastating loss during his last fight, heavyweight boxer Jack Brady’s whole career went down for the count. Now, his late manager’s daughter has inherited his contract and Jack is pleased to discover that the girl he fell in love with as a kid has grown into a strong, sexy woman—until she makes it clear that Jack has no choice but to get in the ring.

 
Daniella Chambers is determined to get her father’s failing gym back on track with Jack’s upcoming fight. She knows Jack’s got the talent to become champion and decides to force the unmotivated fighter away from the neon lights of Vegas to train in the seclusion of her lake house. But when they take a time out from their sessions to steam up the bedroom, the urge to win gets all tangled up with their desires. 
 
Now, Jack’s fight is swiftly approaching, and the fate of the gym isn’t the only thing on the ropes...
 
Includes an exclusive preview of the next Ringside novel, Going the Distance.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT ON: KATHY HARRIS!

Let's welcome Kathy to the blog!

Kathy Harris is an author by way of a “divine detour” into the Nashville entertainment business. After graduating with a Journalism/Advertising degree from Southern Illinois University, she moved to Tennessee to work in the Christian music industry. That position soon transitioned into what would become a long-tenured country music marketing career.

For several years, Kathy freelanced entertainment biographies and wrote, as well as ghost wrote, news stories and columns for various music publications. In 2007, she sold her first Christian non-fiction story, “Walk on Water,” which was included in Thomas Nelson’s All My Bad Habits I Learned from Grandpa. That same year one of her devotions was published in The One Year Life Verse Devotional from Tyndale House. She also contributed “Blooms of Wisdom” to the Chicken Soup for the Soul 2010 release Thanks, Mom.

Abingdon Press published Kathy’s debut novel, The Road to Mercy, in September 2012. A former ACFW Genesis finalist and category winner in the RWA/Faith Hope & Love Touched by Love, Kathy writes women’s fiction and romantic suspense.

She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Christian Authors Network, and RWA, and was the publicity chairman for her local writers group. An active blogger, she regularly interviews literary and music guests for her popular blog, Divine Detour, www.DivineDetour.com. Read more about Kathy at her author website, (http://www.kathyharrisbooks.com), and/or follow her on Twitter (@DivineDetour) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/KathyHarrisAuthor). Her Amazon Author page is here: http://www.amazon.com/Kathy-Harris/e/B007H25NRO/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

FROM AMAZON:
Josh Harrison, a contemporary Christian singer, and his wife Bethany face a difficult decision that also tests their faith. A rupture in Beth's carotid artery leaves her on the brink of death even as she's pregnant with their first child. While Dr. Ben Abrams urges her to terminate the pregnancy to save her own life, she and Josh step out on faith and decide to carry the baby to full term.

During the next few months, Josh struggles with his faith, Beth hides a secret that may destroy their marriage. She also discovers a decades-old connection to Dr. Abrams that could change his life forever.

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT ON: SARAH ROBINSON!

Welcome to the blog spotlight, Sarah!

Sarah Robinson is a bestselling author in contemporary romance, romantic suspense, crime, and thrillers. She has ranked in the top 10 at Barnes & Noble, top 25 at Amazon, as well as top 5 in specific categories like mysteries, thrillers, romantic suspense, and more with her two series, The Photographer Trilogy and the Sand & Clay Rocker Series.

In regards to future publications, she is represented by Nicole Resciniti at the Seymour Literary Agency and has recently been contracted by Loveswept, a Random House Penguin imprint, for a new contemporary romance series that begins in September 2015 called Kavanagh Legends. The series currently follows Irish alpha male brothers in the world of MMA fighting.

Sarah Robinson is a native of the Washington, DC area and has both her Bachelors and Masters Degrees incriminal psychology. She is newly married to a local police officer, Justin, who is just as much of an animal rescue enthusiast as she is. Together, they own a zoo of rescues, as well as volunteering and fostering for multiple animal shelters

Her latest book is Breaking a Legend:

KAVANAGH LEGENDS SERIES:

This series is being published by Loveswept, an imprint of Random House Penguin, starting in Fall 2015. It will be approximately 6-7 books in length and focus around a family of Irish, alpha male MMA fighters living in the Bronx, NY.

BOOK 1:

Breaking A Legend, Released: September 29, 2015, Genre: Contemporary Romance

Perfect for fans of Katy Evans and Monica Murphy, Sarah Robinson’s blistering-hot series debut introduces the Kavanagh brothers—mixed martial arts fighters who work hard, play hard, and love with all their hearts.

As one of the big names at his family’s gym, Legends, MMA star Rory Kavanagh is used to being in the spotlight—until a gruesome leg injury knocks him out of the cage. Rory is left feeling sidelined in more ways than one, battling the inner demons that come with losing the one shot at his dreams. Then Clare walks into his life and gives him a new dream: winning her heart. There aren’t many new faces in Woodlawn these days, but this tough, beautiful stranger makes Rory want to get his life back into fighting shape.

Clare Ivers doesn’t think she’ll be able to tell anyone what really brought her to the close-knit Bronx neighborhood where she just started bartending. But her life’s on pause and her past is catching up fast, try as she might to move on—with new friends, steady work, and a chiseled alpha male trying to get her attention. Even though Rory’s more than a little intense, she can’t deny that her heart beats faster when he looks at her with those soulful silver eyes. Clare thought she was done with love, but Rory might just be man enough to show her she thought wrong.

Contact Sarah here:

Website: https://www.booksbysarahrobinson.net

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/booksby_sarah

Facebook: Facebook Author Fan Page - https://www.facebook.com/BooksBySarahRobinson

Tumblr: Tumblr – http://booksbysarah.tumblr.com

Pinterest: Pinterest – http://www.pinterest.com/sarahkaterobins

Instagram: Instagram- http://instagram.com/booksbysarahrobinson

Amazon Author Page: Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/author/booksbysarahrobinson