Congratulations, Madison, on the new release. Let’s first take a look at the eye-catching cover…
The Blurb
He Promised Forever, then Walked Away. Now he wants her back.
Tyler Winthrop, rich, handsome, elusive sees his moment to win Regan Howe slipping through his fingers. He has remained on the outskirts of Regan’s life since high school, reluctant to reveal his true past and expose her to danger. Despite their obvious attraction, Tyler has remained her friend and protector, keeping Regan at arm’s length for her own safety,
Regan Howe, won her coveted CEO position through hard work and a willingness to buck family tradition. Now, Brandon Hockney, a handsome US Senator with his eye on the White House, wants her to give it up, along with her home, friends and family for a move to DC and marriage to him.
Regan wants a family but is she prepared to leave all she loves, including the alluring Tyler Winthrop. Regan has waited twenty years for Tyler to commit. He once promised her forever, then he destroyed her trust and her hopes for a future together. Still, she cannot break the ties between them.
When Regan tests the waters with Brandon, Tyler is tapped as acting CEO, throwing the pair together, and forcing both to make a choice. Is this the end or their one last chance at love? Battling overwhelming odds and a racing clock, will Tyler be forced to release his one true love to find happiness with another man? How can he when he’s besotted?
As the danger mounts for Tyler, can he wrestle free of his past and lure Regan away from her Senator? Join our handsome hero as he attempts to win back his love in this exciting and steamy page turner, the fourth of the sexy, contemporary Beguiling Bachelor romance series.
Genre: Steamy Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Buy now on Amazon
Love your cover, Madison. It showcases power and passion in equal measure. What would you advise starting authors about choosing the right cover for their stories? What should they focus on?
Thank you so much for giving me a chance to visit and meet your readers. I am excited to offer them a chance to learn about me and my novels. Now, on to your questions.
First, know your audience and then work with a professional who understands your genre. I made a huge mistake the first time I released “Bedazzled” using a wonderful cover illustration that I loved but that bewildered readers. I thought I had to capture the plot of my story, but I missed the mark completely by failing to let the cover telegraph the genre. How could readers know it was their kind of book? I tried to stand out instead of fit in – a major mistake new authors make. Here is a picture of that first cover – great for rom-com maybe but not for a steamy romance.
Once I learned my lesson – the hard way with no sales to speak of – I started learning about the covers of books in my genre. They all featured a man or a couple. I opted for just the hero – I believe it appeals more to women and studies showed I was right.
I hired EmCat Designs because Megan knew the romance genre and frankly, because she was affordable. I had studied the covers of bestselling contemporary romances and shared with Megan what I sought. I also made sure she knew that she would need covers for a series of at least five books, so she could plan for all of them when she did the first cover.
I knew I wanted a man in a suit, and not a naked torso covered in tattoos. I was not writing about bad boys, after all. I was writing about billionaires – although occasionally the two overlap. Then we added that leather-like background to imply a bit of toughness. Rich, sexy, tough all in one image. I think Megan did a brilliant job.
One more thing. I made sure I owned the rights to use the photos that go on my covers. Always.
Tell us something about the hero of “Besotted”? Why do you think readers will adore him? Will they?
I try to make readers fall in love with all my heroes. First, they are not perfect, they make mistakes so readers can relate to them despite their wealth and success. Second, love makes them vulnerable, sometimes surprising the character.
With Tyler, I have created a whip-smart, sexy and successful lawyer who has loved the same girl since high school – his best friend’s sister. We have watched Tyler pine for Regan from book one the Beguiling Bachelor series, wondering what prevented him from acting on his feelings. By now, Besotted is book four, readers should be anticipating his move – begging for it. When Tyler finally faces his demons and slays dragons to be with his one true love, readers should be with him every step of the way.
Of all the attributes of a well written story, which is the one that pleases you the most?
I love a character I can sink my teeth into. I need to understand why people take the actions they take, say the words they say, love the people they love. The characters drive the stories for me, not vice versa. I often change my plots as I write, because getting to know a character better I realize that they would behave differently than I originally imagined.
Think about “Gone with the Wind” or your favorite long-running series on television as a perfect example. When you think back on “Gray’s Anatomy”, “The Sopranos”, or “West Wing”, it is the character development that drives the twists and turns of the plot, right? You get into the people. That is my goal writing characters, that if you meet them again and again in future novels you feel like you know them; you are happy to see an old friend.
What one or two things absolutely irritate you in a book, and would most certainly make you put the book down immediately?
Bad writing – bad grammar or spelling. And repetition. I must repeat that I hate when an author repeats herself in sentences. I hate when sentences repeat and then have bad spelling and grammar too, also.
See what I mean?
Your advice to starting authors – one thing they MUST do and one that they should NEVER.
Ooh, this one is tough. I made so many mistakes starting out that it gets embarrassing. I think the biggest mistake was trying to be different instead of fitting in. I am an independent author – self published – because I wanted to write somewhere between sweet and hot romance, somewhere between a short romance novel and a complete work of fiction. I didn’t think there was room for me to fit neatly within a genre.
But finding a niche where you fit is critical – readers like to read within a niche, similar to shopping at the same store, or eating in the same restaurants. People like to know what they can expect. Sure, they try new things now and then, after a personal recommendation or review usually.
So armed with that knowledge I would say a new author needs to find her niche, know her niche and then shine in her niche. I write contemporary romance – on the steamy side, sometimes with a hint of intrigue like in Besotted, but always contemporary. My characters are not teens, they are in their late twenties or thirties, my sex is within the context of the romance, not gratuitous. My readers can expect those things from me, along with a happy ending.
I am not saying never deviate – I am saying know your audience. Perhaps a different pen name if you want to write romance and mystery, or erotica and sweet romance, Never confuse your readers – they won’t thank you for it.
Genre: Steamy Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Buy now on Amazon
Madison is celebrating the paperback release of Besotted with one incredible giveaway.
She is offering 16 books, that’s right 16 paperback books to 16 lucky readers! Readers out of the US will receive an ebook.
Click here for the Rafflecopter…
You have a chance to enter everyday so be sure to follow the tour. You may find all the tour locations here http://bit.ly/2OSlZcl
I really enjoyed this interview! Thank you so much for sharing 🙂