Sunday Brunch 3/16/14

 INDIE AUTHOR GRACIE LONSDALE
IS JOINING ME FOR BRUNCH TODAY

First and foremost, it is a pleasure to have you here. Welcome to Harper’s Sunday Brunch Interview!
So, can you tell us what makes Gracie Lonsdale tick? What got you started on the path to becoming an author?
Well, I actually started out writing in a role play group online, and found that I really loved it. It kind of segued into writing stories and submitting my first few to a publisher. This is my first venture in self publication.

What are you currently working on? Would you care to share a snippet?
I have two projects that I am currently working on. This is from an untitled project at this point, but it’s something very near and dear to my heart. It’s a bit raw and unedited:

She was adorable, the way she blushed. I’d noticed her the minute she walked in. She was beautiful, petite, and worked out hard. I couldn’t keep my eyes off her and thanked my lucky stars the elliptical machines were positioned in front of the treadmills. For forty-five minutes, I had an unobstructed view of heaven. I had to chastise myself for staring at her, feeling like a schoolboy at my age, not to mention the guilt.

Why did I feel guilty? It’s not like I was doing anything wrong. Lori had been gone for nearly two and a half years—twenty-nine months, and six days to be exact. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about her, and wish she were still here. The world as I knew it ceased to exist the minute I got the phone call that there had been an accident. The only consolation I had was knowing that she didn’t suffer.

I didn’t really want to come on this cruise. It was a gift from my girls who were worried about their old man, hoping that I would be able to enjoy myself. Their hearts were in the right place, but I don’t know what they were thinking. I didn’t want to disappoint them. I knew they were concerned about me. Lori and I had a great marriage. She was a wonderful woman, a great wife and mother, and I missed her terribly. My girls were both married and had young families of their own, worrying about me only added to their already busy lives and hectic lives. When they gave me this cruise as a birthday gift, along with the—we know you loved mom, but you need to move on with your life, speech—giving me their blessing to date. I was a little taken back, not mad, it’s just that I’d always thought of Lori as the love of my life, and dating hadn’t even entered my mind. I really hadn’t been interested, but being alone wasn’t much fun, especially since Lori and I had just started to get our own lives back. With the girls married and out of the house, it was just us, and we were really enjoying our time alone. We traveled, went out to dinner a few days a week, golfed. We really couldn’t be happier, it was like we were starting all over again…and then it was gone.

Maybe I’d get lucky and run into Miss Elliptical again. It would be nice to talk to someone more my own age.

Do you include some of your own personal experiences in your books or do you prefer to use your imagination?
I do put a little bit of my real life in most of what I’ve been writing lately. It’s easier to draw on emotion and convey it when it comes from my memory.

What genre do you typically write in and why did you choose this over others?
I mostly right happy ever after contemporary romance. It’s one of my favorites to read, so it seems more natural for me to write what I, myself, enjoy. I’m a hopeless romantic at heart

Do you have a specific process or a ritual you go through when sitting down to write?
No, not really. I just need complete quiet to write. So, the middle of the night is great, or very early morning.

Where do you find your inspiration for your plots? Do you have any tricks of the trade you would care to share?
Finding plots seems to come easy for me. I have about fifty of them written down. Actually writing them out is the problem. They just come to me. There are a lot of stories in just the ordinary things around us.

What is the oddest place/situation where an idea for a book/plot has come to you?
Probably the supermarket, of course when I didn’t have a pen or paper. I ended up using my notes on my iPhone so I wouldn’t forget.

What makes a book stand out and perk your interest?
I do look at covers first, I’ll admit it. If the cover doesn’t interest me, I’m not likely to look twice. I will read things recommended to by friends.

We all have our favorite authors. Can you share some of yours and tell us why you like them?
My favorite author is who I am reading at the time. Most recently S.A. Wolf, Jasinda Wilder, Priscilla West, Angel Payne, and Belle Aurora.
 
We all have a pet peeve, care to share yours?
Mean people.

When you’re not writing, what are the things you enjoy doing to relax?
Hanging out with my family and reading.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, Gracie. I know my followers will enjoy this spotlight as much as I have conducting it. Good luck on all your future endeavors.
Thanks for having me Harper!

A LITTLE MORE ABOUT GRACIE 

I was born and raised on Long Island, NY where I reside today with my husband and children. I am an avid reader of all genres, especially contemporary romance novels. After years of writing down small blurbs, characters, and story line ideas, I have finally taken the time to bring them all to life. 

PLACES TO FIND GRACIE ONLINE

FACEBOOK AUTHOR PAGE
HER WEBSITE
TWITTER or @GracieLonsdale

GRACIE'S CURRENT RELEASE

Ivy Hughes, a graphic artist from New York City, has devoted all her time and energy to her career, until she finally realizes something’s missing. Fed up with a string of bad first dates that all turned out to be last ones, Ivy takes a risk and fills out an application for a new online dating service, Access to Love, hoping to find her soul mate. Meanwhile, Deacon Brooks, a rugged yet sophisticated horse rancher from a small town in Colorado, decides to take the same risk.

Sparks fly on their extended date over Valentine’s weekend, where they spend two magical, passion-filled days at a ski resort. Then, as they travel to Deacon’s Ranch, the passion only grows deeper for the pair from completely different worlds. Will they find their happily ever after, or could their love be strong enough to survive living half-way across the country from each other?

PURCHASE LINKS FOR 

PURSUIT OF PASSION

AMAZON
BARNES & NOBLE
SMASHWORDS
ARE