Christine's Writing Process Tag Blog: The Maverick's Red Hot Reunion Pre-Release Fun

Hi Everyone,

I’m so excited to be tagged in this Writing Process Blog tour. Many thanks to my Entangled Indulgence Line sister author Miranda Liasson for including me. I encourage everyone to check out this 2013 Golden Heart Finalist’s blog here. And there’s one subject that I love to talk about a lot: writing. So this is a fun way for me to share what’s going on in my corner of the romance world.

1) What am I currently working on?

Currently, I’m working on the sequel to The Maverick’s Red Hot Reunion. I’m super excited to work on Hannah and Caleb’s love story. He’s an incredible dark knight in shining armor and Hannah’s always relied her best friend’s older brother to protect her. That is until she’s eighteen and tells Caleb she’s in love with him. Eight years later, Caleb and Hannah are forced to work together at Sweetbriar Springs. Sparks fly, but these star crossed lovers have to move beyond the wounds of their pasts if they are going to have the future they deserve.

2) How does my work differ from others of its genre? 

I like to write deeply emotional stories about two strong characters, but they’re filled with pops of humor and light. My hope is that a readers will be moved by their journey, but I also want my readers to laugh out loud. Joy is necessary even in the darkest of times. 

3) Why do I write what I write? 

I was a romance reader long before I became a romance writer. Romances offered me an escape, and they empowered me. So when I sat down to write my first ill-fated manuscript I gravitated to romance. I like writing stories about strong heroines who won’t settle for second best when their hero can be their perfect match, warts and all. That’s life. That’s love. I still read romances to escape life’s worries and troubles. And when I am finished reading them, I have good feeling in my heart. That’s why I write stories that end on a happily-ever-after note. 

4) How does my individual writing process work?

Honestly? I think it’s ever evolving. Every book I’ve written has undergone a different way of getting to the end. Some of that is based on where I was in learning the craft. Some of that is based on the characters and how they choose to drive the plot. I do have a basic way of starting. I get an idea and a scene pops into my head. I start thinking about what ifs. I flesh out my characters with birthdays, physical attributes, backgrounds, careers, and try to lock in their flaws. I work a lot of this out with my critique partner Pam Mantovani. Once I feel like I know my characters, I start looking at the internal, emotional journey they’ll take toward each other. I loosely plot. I often have a blurb and basic synopsis and log line. Then I start writing. I am not the best first draft writer. I’m a layer-in writer. And I revise. A lot. Eventually, the story really reveals itself during the revision process.

I had fun sharing my writing life with everyone. The Maverick’s Red Hot Reunion releases on June 30. 

My debut book cover from Entangled!

Can he satisfy his craving without losing his heart?

Corporate Maverick Zach Tanner returns to North Carolina to rebuild his dying friend's resort. He's got the money, the power, and the will to transform Sweetbriar Springs into a premier spa for the glamorous, but he doesn't count on the woman he once loved and lost to handle the construction contract. Zach thought he'd buried his desire for Kennedy five years ago, but he's still drawn to her. He's determined to satisfy his craving to get her out of his system...

Construction company owner Kennedy Gibson is eager to restore Sweetbriar Springs, but when she realizes Zach is her new boss she's terrified he'll learn the truth about their breakup. She agrees to work with the one man she vowed never to hurt again, but can't deny the passion he reignites in her. Soon she believes she has a chance for a different future with Zach, but her secret threatens to destroy their red-hot reunion.

THE MAVERICK'S RED HOT REUNION will be available from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Entangled Publishing and other fine booksellers. 

Happy Birthday to My Dad

Today is my dad's birthday. I wrote a tribute to him two years ago. You can read it here. I still miss him, but when people say that memories bring comfort, they're right. It's been over ten years since he passed away, but I think about him a lot. I even have dreams about him where he's alive and strong and enjoying life. He would have been 85 today.

One of the greatest gifts he gave to me was a life of culture, art and reading across all the genres. I wonder what he would say today if he knew I had written 8 books (2 of which are under the bed) and am close to realizing my dream of publication? I know he didn't think it was possible ten years ago. He thought it was too late. And he said so to me with regret. He knew deep down that I was born to be a writer, but life and circumstances had conspired to keep me from attaining my true mission.

I even agreed with him.

I finished my first book two years later.

I can't stop writing now.

Writing is a part of who I am. I refuse to let the world stop me from being a writer. I don't have to be published to be a writer. I don't have to be a best seller to be a writer. I don't have to have anything but an idea and characters bouncing around my head to be a writer. At the end of the day, it's the writing and the completion of the manuscripts that makes me a writer.

I am a writer.

I think my Dad would be proud of me and all that I have accomplished. I think that he would have been fascinated by all my writing world connections. I can imagine him coming to an RWA National Conference and seeing me at the Literacy Signing and saying to anyone who will listen, "That's my daughter. She's a writer." But you know what else I can imagine? I can imagine him coming to my home and seeing all the writing books about craft in my bookshelves, the diagrams of plot and structure on my walls, the loads of files and books I've printed out that I've written. And I can imagine him saying "That's my daughter. She's a writer."

Thank you Dad for giving me a love of the creative process. For teaching me that it is in the pursuit of artistic perfection that we derive our joy.

Happy Birthday to you. May your Heaven's easels and paints bring you an eternity of that joy.