Category Archives: girlfriends cyber circuit

Girlfriend author April Henry

Posted on by
1

Welcome, girlfriend April Henry, here to dish on her new book HAND OF FATE.

Hand of Fate coverIf Oprah invited you on her show to talk about your book, what would the theme of that show be?
Unintended consequences.

What was the most fun scene in your book to write? The most difficult?
The most fun was the crazy mayhem when downtown Portland was evacuated. The most difficult was what happened with Allison’s pregnancy

Do you have a muse, good luck charm, writing vice?
My vices are all not writing related. They usually involve food.

What do you write on (type of computer, or notebook, etc.) and where do you write?
On a MacBook Pro, often on my couch.

Have you had a “rock star” moment regarding your writing career? If so, what was it?
I was loading towels in the dryer when I got a call from our publisher. A bunch of folks were on a speaker phone yelling, “You’re on the New York Times bestseller list!” I jumped up and down and squealed and felt unreal – and then I kept putting towels in the dryer.

What do you do to celebrate your writing successes?
I am very bad about celebrating.

Describe your personality with five adjectives that would make your 5th grade English teacher proud.
Persevering, impetuous, assiduous, benevolent, convivial.

ABOUT HAND OF FATE:

When the host of a popular radio talk show is murdered, the suspects almost outnumber his millions of listeners.
Outspoken radio talk show host Jim Fate dies he opens a package and releases poisonous gas while his polarizing show, “The Hand of Fate,” is on air.
In the ensuing panic, police evacuate downtown Portland. Soon the triple threat of FBI Special Agent Nicole Hedges, crime reporter Cassidy Shaw and Federal Prosecutor Allison Pierce begin piecing together the madness, motive, and the mystery that lie behind Fate’s murder.
While Lis has worked with Bill O’Reilly for years (often serving as the voice of reason or his liberal foil, depending on your point of view), the character is NO WAY based on O’Reilly.
This is the second in the Triple Threat mystery series, which has been optioned for TV. The first, Hand of Fate, one was on the New York Times bestseller list for four weeks! And in April 2011, readers can look for Heart of Ice, which traces the path of a destruction left by a sociopath – and based on a real-life case Lis prosecuted.

Get the book here.

About the authors
April Henry grew up in a little town in Southern Oregon where the main industries were timber and pears. When she was was 12, she sent Roald Dahl a short story she had written about a six-foot-tall frog named Herman who loved peanut butter. He not only wrote her back – he showed it to the editor of an international children’s author, who asked to publish it.

Since then, April has written nearly a dozen mysteries and thrillers for adults and teens, with seven more on the way. Look for her young adult thriller – Girl, Stolen – in October 2010.

Lis Wiehl is a former federal prosecutor who is now a legal analyst for FOX-TV.

What the critics are saying
“Exciting… readers will identify with these very real women as they try to uncover Fate’s killer, and each battles a personal demon—Allison her fear of miscarriage, Nic her fear of her daughter’s criminal father, and Cassidy her prescription drug addiction.”
–Publishers Weekly

“The second book by Wiehl and Henry featuring the Triple Threat Club ratchets up the excitement and suspense to another level. Realistic characters with authentic dilemmas will appeal to a wide array of mystery lovers.”
–Romantic Times, four stars

Girlfriend Jenny Gardiner

Posted on by
2

smAuthor1Jenny’s back! Funny girl and author Jenny Gardiner pays us a visit with her usual snark intact to talk life and WINGING IT, in stores now. We’ve also posted a video so you can get to know the star of the book. I was blown away how well Gracycie can imitate her housemates’ voices.

If Oprah invited you on her show to talk about your book, what would the theme of that show be?

Um, how about What Took You So Long??? Actually I think I’d be so overwhelmed with undying gratitude I’d have to bring along a carload of food treats because I know Oprah would appreciate some homemade banana cream pie, maybe some amazing pound cake, I make a kick-ass pumpkin bread, too. The theme would be about plying people with food to please them…

What was the most fun scene in your book to write? The most difficult?

I enjoyed writing the scenes about crazy things Graycie has done–and she’s done plenty. Like when she’d snuck off the cage and I was trying to get her back onto it and using a broom to sort of “direct” her and she kept biting the broom and my ankles while repeating (in my voice) “Hello, Gray chicken!” (a little term of endearment I have for her).

The most difficult had to do with things that happened along the way. In my mind this was a story about Graycie but her life and ours are inexplicably tied together, so it became a memoir of my family as well. And it’s tricky writing about family without invading their privacy, so that was hard for me to strike a balance. And hard to revisit some of the tough things we’ve dealt with over the years.

Do you have a muse, good luck charm, writing vice?

Peanut M&Ms used to be my writing vice, but then I gave them up last year for Lent. Somewhere along the line, Mint M&Ms became my writing vice this year, but I gave them up for Lent. Today, it seems that Thin Mints are my writing vice. Are you beginning to see a pattern here? (I should definitely write at coffee shops, rather than at my desk right in the kitchen!)

What do you write on (type of computer, or notebook, etc.) and where do you write?

I have a MacBook and I usually write at home. My desk is basically in the kitchen (see above, bad food crutches) and in the main thoroughfare of the house, so it forces me to focus with external forces (i.e. kids, dogs, cat, parrot) are causing disruption, which is often. I love to work at coffee shops and when I really have to crunch on deadlines, I do that, though. But I feel guilty leaving the pets home alone all day so don’t do that regularly.

Have you had a “rock star” moment regarding your writing career? If so, what was it?

Well, maybe a peripheral one. I had the wonderful fortune of having Winging It be selected as a Pulpwood Queen’s book club book for this year, and that meant attending their awesomely fabulous Girlfriends Weekend in January in Jefferson, TX. The keynote speaker was an author whose writing I revere, and I thought at best I’d get a glimpse of him. But instead I got to join the other 30-odd writers who spent the weekend in the company of Pat Conroy, who is one of the most talented authors alive today, in my opinion. He was charming, gracious and thoughtful, he regaled us and the Pulpwood Queens with fascinating tales of his life as a writer and just funny personal anecdotes, and he even made a point of purchasing and having signed books from each author there. How cool was that?

What do you do to celebrate your writing successes?

Well, I’m never opposed to a nice bottle of champagne…And a lovely dinner out.

Describe your personality with five adjectives that would make your 5th grade English teacher proud.

Dogmatic, committed, persevering, jovial, reliable

http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Jenny-Gardiner/64294275

“As sweet as a song and sharp as a beak, Winging It really soars as a memoir about family–children and husbands, feathers and fur–and our capacity to keep loving though life may occasionally bite.”
–Wade Rouse, bestselling author of At Least in the City Someone Would Hear Me Scream, and Confessions of a Prep School Mommy Handler

“Jenny Gardiner’s hilarious memoir will have you alternately laughing and crying, and watching the skies for winged pets out for your blood.”
–Kristy Kiernan, Award-winning author of Catching Genius

“With her right-on humor, Jenny Gardiner manages to make owning a vengeful parrot sound like fun! You don’t even have to like pets to like this book.”
–Eve Brown-Waite
Author of FIRST COMES LOVE, THEN COMES MALARIA

“This funny, smart book is much more than a story about life with a challenging parrot. Jenny Gardiner writes with humor and grace about the challenges and joys and stresses of parenthood, too. I loved it.”
–Sarah Pekkanen
author of The Opposite of Me

To get the book, click on the book’s cover in the sidebar.

Girlfriend Megan Crane

Posted on by
Reply

Megan Crane Author PhotoWelcome, Girlfriend Megan!

If Oprah invited you on her show to talk about your book, what would the theme of that show be?
The unrealistic expectations women place upon themselves because they think others will only love them if they are the perfect friend, wife, mother, daughter.

What was the most fun scene in your book to write? The most difficult?
The most fun scene was definitely the alley scene. I will say no more! The most difficult was probably the hard-won conversation between Meredith and her former best-friend toward the end of the book, when all the truths have been aired. That was a tough one.

Do you have a muse, good luck charm, writing vice?
I am pretty sure my extremely fat and ill-behaved cats feel that they are both muses and charms; they are not. I don’t really have either, I don’t think. Though I have written every single one of my books on this very same desk, and I’m kind of attached to it, if that counts.

What do you write on (type of computer, or notebook, etc.) and where do you write?
I write on my desktop computer with the giant screen that I can’t do without, sitting at my desk in my office, which is finally a separate room in my house–a huge step up from when it was shoved in the corner of the kitchen.

Have you had a “rock star” moment regarding your writing career? If so, what was it?
I’m not sure what a “rock star” moment means, but it was pretty cool to hit the USA Today Bestseller list. That still feels great!

What do you do to celebrate your writing successes?
I try to enjoy them. I say “try” because I am really, really bad about living in the moment. But I’m working on it!

Describe your personality with five adjectives that would make your 5th grade English teacher proud.
I asked my husband and he said: precocious, empathic, challenging, inquisitive, enthusiastic. So there you go!

Thanks, Megan. It was fun getting to know you better. Now we’re ready to read your book! Babes, see below…

Everyone Else’s Girl is the critically-acclaimed second novel by author Megan Crane, out now in the UK.

About the book:

Everyone Else's Girl UK CoverMeredith does things for other people. She irons clothes for her boyfriend, she attends her ex-best friend’s horrendous hen party for her brother (who’s about to marry the girl) and she moves back to her parents’ house to look after her dad when his leg is broken. She’s a good girl and that matters. But when she gets back home, all is not as Meredith remembered. Especially Scott, that geeky teenager from her old class at school. He’s definitely different now. And so, it seems, is she. One by one, her family and old friends start to tell her some home truths and Meredith begins to realise she’s not so perfect after all. Maybe it is time she stopped being everyone else’s girl and started living for herself…

Praise for Everyone Else’s Girl:
“Megan Crane rules! Cancel your evening plans: You won’t want to stop reading until you’ve devoured every delicious word.”
—Meg Cabot
“Amusing, heartfelt and emotionally sophisticated chick-lit.” —Kirkus
“Crane prevails with refreshingly real human emotions and reactions. In this book, actions have consequences, and no one gets off easy, despite appearances.” —RT BookClub
“I suspect a lot of readers were like me – desperately seeking fiction with a romantic edge, realistic stories, and smart writing (oh, for more smart writing).
I suspect a lot of readers were like me and dropped out of chicklit game because finding the good was damn hard work. I dedicate this review to those readers. There is hope…Everyone Else’s Girl is a good book.” —Kassia Krozser at paperbackreader.com

About Megan Crane:

USA Today bestselling author Megan Crane has written five women’s fiction novels, many work-for-hire young adult novels, and five category romances (under the name Caitlin Crews) since publishing her first book in 2004. Her novel, Frenemies, was a BookSense Notable in July 2007.　She teaches various creative writing classes both online at mediabistro.com and offline at UCLA Extension’s prestigious Writers’ Program, where she finally utilizes her MA and PhD in English Literature. Megan lives in　Los Angeles with her comic book artist/animator husband and too many pets. For more info visit her at　www.megancrane.com or www.caitlincrews.com.

You can find Megan on Twitter: http://twitter.com/megancrane

At her journal: http://megancrane.livejournal.com/

On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/megan.crane
An excerpt from Everyone Else’s Girl is here: http://www.megancrane.com/eeg.html

You can buy the book here.

Girlfriend Hank Phillippi Ryan

Posted on by
Reply

Welcome, HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN, to tell us about her latest mystery!

HPR-stoolvertCROPPED2MUG-300lgAward-winning investigative reporter Hank Phillippi Ryan is on the air at Boston’s NBC affiliate. Her work has resulted in new laws, people sent to prison, homes removed from foreclosure, and millions of dollars in restitution. Along with her 26 EMMYs, Hank’s won dozens of other journalism honors. She’s been a radio reporter, a legislative aide in the United States Senate and an editorial assistant at Rolling Stone Magazine working with Hunter S. Thompson.

Her first mystery, the best-selling PRIME TIME, won the Agatha for Best First Novel. It was also was a double RITA nominee for Best First Book and Best Romantic Suspense Novel, and a Reviewers’ Choice Award Winner. FACE TIME and the new AIR TIME are IMBA bestsellers. DRIVE TIME, February 2010 from MIRA Books, just earned a starred review from Library Journal. Hank is on the national board of Mystery Writers of America.

Her website is http://www.HankPhillippiRyan.com

“Sassy, fast-paced and appealing. First-class entertainment.”
**Sue Grafton

“I love this series!”
**Suzanne Brockmann

Hank Phillippi Ryan knows the television business entirely, she understands plotting and she writes beautifully. No wonder I loved Drive Time. Anyone would.”
**Robert B. Parker author of Spenser for Hire

Hank’s new book is DRIVE TIME

HPRdrivetime FINAL 300med (2)Investigative reporter Charlotte McNally is an expert at keeping things confidential, but suddenly everyone has a secret, and it turns out it may be possible to know too much. Charlie’s latest TV scoop–an expose of a dangerous recalled car scam complete with stakeouts, high-speed chases and hidden-camera footage–is ratings gold. But soon that leads her to a brand new and diabolical scheme (incredibly timely!) that could put every driver in danger.

Charlie’s personal and professional lives are on a collision course, too. Her fiancé is privy to information about threats at an elite private school that have suddenly turned deadly.

Charlie has never counted on happy endings. But now, just as she’s finally starting to believe in second chances, she realizes revenge, extortion and murder might leave her alone again. Or even dead. Emmy and Agatha award winning reporter Hank Phillippi Ryan proves that when everyone has a secret, the real mystery is knowing when to tell.

Tell us about Drive Time.
DRIVE TIME is about secrets. TV reporter Charlie McNally’s working on a story about a dangerous scheme that could absolutely happen…and let me just say, if you own a car, or rent a car, you’ll never look at your vehicle the same way after reading DRIVE TIME. In fact, after writing the book, I now get a bit creeped out when I go into a parking garage. That’s all I‘ll say.

Charlie’s also drawn into another frightening situation—this one at the prep school where her fiancé is an English professor. When Charlie learns a secret that might put her step-daughter-to-be in danger, and might also be an blockbuster investigative story—how does she balance her loyalty to her husband-to-be—with her need to protect the public?

So this is a tough one for Charlie. And she must make many life-changing decisions. Just when she begins to think she might be able to have it all—a terrific career and a new husband and a new life–revenge, extortion and murder may bring it all to a crashing halt.

DRIVE TIME just got a fabulous starred review from Library Journal. Just a snippet of the rave: “Placing Ryan in the same league as Lisa Scottoline…her latest book catapults the reader into the fast lane and doesn’t relent until the story careens to a stop. New readers will speed to get her earlier books, and diehard fans will hope for another installment.”

And dear Robert B. Parker’s quote is on the cover—he says “I loved DRIVE TIME!”

Growing up, did you ever think you’d be an investigative reporter?

Definitely—not. You know, I have a funny juxtaposition of desire to be in the spotlight—and sheer terror of being in the spotlight. I love my job in TV—and have to go live and unrehearsed al the time. Confession: I’m still terrified every time. I want to be perfect, and when you’re on live, you can’t possibly be. That’s one reason why I love investigative reporting—there’s more time to work, and dig, and polish, and produce, It’s like making a little movie, and I can make it as perfect as possible.

Anyway, my sisters and I used to create musical shows when we were all young, and perform for our parents in our back yard. I did acting in high school and college. I wanted to be a DJ on the radio for a long time! But I thought I would be an English teacher, or a lawyer for the Mine Workers union, or for awhile, a political activist.

(My mother, though, says she always knew I would be a television reporter—but I think that was just her way of rationalizing that all I did as a pre-teen and teenager was read books and watch TV.)

I knew from my first Nancy Drew that I loved mysteries. Nancy was my first best friend—I was a geeky unpopular kid, and it was such a relief to go home and hang out with Nancy. She was smart, and made it be okay to be smart. She was confident and inquisitive and resourceful. I loved that. But being a TV reporter was not in my sights. Little did I know!

Your website and blog site URLS.

http://www.HankPhillippiRyan.com

http://www.JungleRedWriters.com

http://www.theLipstickChronicles.typepad.com

http://www.femmesfatales.typepad.com

Girlfriend Author Judi Fennell

Posted on by
Reply

Atta-babe to author Judi Fennell on the release of book three in her Mer Trilogy. Welcome, Judi!

Headshot_Judi Fennell1. If Oprah invited you on her show to talk about your book, what would the theme of that show be? If Oprah ever decided to have Romance on her show, I’d love the theme of that show to be about the industry. How it has changed from those covers of the 70s to empowered women rescuing heroes and the characters growing together, as well as the modern take we have on them. That we’re not stuck in the bodice-ripper image and that they’re written by smart, intelligent, funny, talented people – male and female. And then I have a bridge to sell her in Brooklyn because I have about as much chance of doing that as appearing on her show. :)

2. What was the most fun scene in your book to write? The most fun scene in Catch of a Lifetime, was any one with Ginger in it. That character just flew off (pun totally intended) the page for me and she’s such a smart-alec, that it was fun to let her loose.
The most difficult? The scene where Logan discovers Michael is missing. I’m a parent; it’s my greatest fear.

3. Do you have a muse, good luck charm, writing vice? I have a muse. When she decides to show up. :)

4. What do you write on (type of computer, or notebook, etc.) and where do you write? I’ve gone through waaaaay too many laptops recently, and, as I type this, I’m on a netbook I bought one of my kids for Christmas because my laptop is ONCE AGAIN in for repairs. I don’t get it; I don’t mistreat my “babies.” I take really good care of them, but every single one seems to have had a design flaw or wonky component.

5. Have you had a “rock star” moment regarding your writing career? The first fan email. I honestly can’t describe what that moment is like, other than to say, we (authors) put our work out there. Work that we’ve spent countless hours over, sweating the details, doing the research, worrying about one little word, or conveying the emotions properly to do the story/characters justice. Then we send it out there, not knowing if it’s any good. Then our editor says, “Fabulous!” and the worry lessens. But once it hits the shelves, it’s open season. I’m so happy that people have embraced my world and characters. I hope they love the genies just as much.

COAL_ Judi Fennell6. What do you do to celebrate your writing successes? I smile a lot. :) And maybe open some bubbly with good friends.

7. Describe your personality with five adjectives that would make your 5th grade English teacher proud. I’m going to defer to the answer I gave the last time I was on your blog, Malena, because my family had so much fun with it: Confident, eloquent, dedicated, considerate, thoughtful. Okay, those came from my family. And here are the rest they’re throwing out: braniac, shakespearian, bitchy, blonde, farfegnugan. Yes, my family has an odd sense of humor. Guess there’s no question where mine came from.

Thanks, Judi! Babes, get your CATCH today!