Contemporary Romance
Date Published: 10/18/2013
The Kincaids Book #2
By the author of the bestselling Escape to New Zealand series--
When you wish upon a star . . .
Alec Kincaid has never met the obstacle he couldn’t overcome—or the woman who could resist him. And it’s not going to happen now, not with his star shining more brightly than ever in the high-stakes arena of San Francisco’s software industry.
Desiree Harlin doesn’t believe in fairy tales, and she doesn’t waste time wishing. She’s learned the hard way that dreams don’t come true. And with her reputation and hard-won security on the line, succumbing to temptation isn’t an option.
But things aren’t always what they seem. And even stars sometimes fall.
Interview:
Which of your seven
books is your favorite?
That changes all the time. This latest one, “Nothing
Personal,” just consumed me. I got to do some mystery and suspense, which I
loved, and Alec and Desiree took me over. This book poured out of me in a
furious blur, like nothing since “Just for Now.”
What’s your
publishing story?
After I finished my first two books, I tried the traditional
thing, submitted to 38 different agents and publishers, got pretty discouraged.
Three expressed interest, all ultimately said no. The problem seemed to be,
“New Zealand rugby? Huh? Tough hook!” And I knew it was a GREAT hook! I KNEW
it!
Besides, I’d had a 20-year career in publishing, 10 of those
years in marketing, and I figured I should be able to figure out the
self-publishing thing if anybody could. I sold 2,000 ebooks the first month,
20,000 ebooks the fifth month, had a magical hour where I outranked Nora
Roberts, published the paperbacks, and a year and four more books later, it’s
still going great. Guess those folks were wrong . . . not that I’m gloating,
LOL. Thank goodness for Amazon!
What’s your writing
routine?
I’d like to give you some rational, reasonable schedule, but
the fact is, once a book grabs me, I’m working all the time. Just ask my poor
husband--if it weren’t for pizza, he’d have wasted away by now. I lost six
pounds in the six weeks it took me to write “Nothing Personal.”
You’re best known for
your “Escape to New Zealand” series. What research did you do to make
sure the setting was real and vivid for your readers?
Swam in the ocean a lot and drank lots of coffees and
traveled all around and did lots of fun outdoors things in beautiful places,
and watched a lot of rugby in pubs. Sigh. It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta
do it.
Seriously, I’d say, just lived there. The longer you’re
there, the more Kiwi culture seeps into your bones. The Maori influence, the
geographical isolation (it’s just so FAR from everywhere), the sheer physical
beauty of the place, they’re all part of it. You end up with this emphasis on
family, the land (and the sea), hard work, and . . . well, I’d describe it as
being a “regular person,” no matter who or what you are. Not being a jerk. Oh,
and rugby.
All your heroes in
that series are rugby players. Why rugby?
Umm . . . Google “All Blacks haka.” Go on. I’ll wait.
Yeah. Well. Tight jerseys, short shorts, full contact, big
muscles, the “regular person” deal combined with the fact that the All Blacks
(NZ’s national rugby team) are NZ’s version of movie stars—and the best team in
the world. The pressure of that in a country of 4.5 million people, about 4
million of whom will recognize you walking down the street—and will come up to
shake your hand, ask for an autograph or a picture, and you’ll be expected to
smile and SAY YES. It’s life in a fishbowl, and good behavior is expected.
Pretty different from the lives of athletes in other countries, and I just
found it fascinating to think about what it would be like to be that person.
On the other hand, “Welcome
to Paradise” is totally different, a spin on reality television. What
inspired the plotline? Why 1885?
I wanted to write a story about brothers—guys’ relationships
make me laugh. Somehow I got the idea to put them on a reality show. I’m from
Idaho, and I have farm connections, so doing a show about living like pioneers
in 1885 was a pretty easy leap. I got to interview some older folks who grew up
on farms and whose parents did too, almost back to those times, and my awesome,
handsome bull-rider nephew did things like going out and throwing an axe for
me. I texted him, “If you have an axe throwing challenge how far can you throw
it,” and he texted back, “One handed or two?” That cracked me up. (Axes are
HEAVY.)
Why do you write love
stories?
Romantic love is such a powerful and beautiful thing. But I
try to write about more than that too--about those pivotal moments when you
make the big, scary decisions, when you change, when your life changes. I also
love writing about parents and children, sisters and brothers, friends, the
love of country and place. Sometimes when we say “love,” we forget about all
the different kinds of love that enrich our lives. Two of my books, “Just for
Now” and “Just for Fun,” are very much about fatherhood and motherhood. Plus,
kids are funny.
What type of
person is your ideal heroine? Your ideal hero?
Heroine: Strong, with a backbone. Doesn’t necessarily mean
she’s “tough”: several of my heroines are very gentle and sweet, but they all
have a core of fortitude, character, endurance.
Hero: No question I write alpha males! But not jerks I hope--because
to me, a strong man doesn’t need to hurt or control anyone else, especially a
woman, to feel like a man. (I’m not talking about what kind of sex you have.
That’s a whole different thing, though for me, reading or writing, it has to be
explicitly consensual. And role-playing and having fun are one thing, real
degradation and pain are another, and not someplace I go. And it has to include
condoms!)
I suppose the main thing I like to both read AND write in
characters is just basic decency, being a person who’s trying hard to do the
right thing, even if you mess up.
What’s next?
Another New Zealand book, I think. I have an idea floating
around in there. But Alec and Desiree have to leave my head first!
Author Bio:
Rosalind James is the author of the Kindle-bestselling "Escape to New Zealand" series (currently five titles strong), as well as the new U.S.-based "Kincaids" series. Her first book,"Just This Once," has sold tens of thousands of copies in the year since it was published, eventually reaching #85 in the Amazon store. A marketing professional and publishing industry veteran, Rosalind has lived all over the United States and in a number of other countries, traveling with her civil engineer husband. Most recently, she spent several years in Australia and New Zealand, where she fell in love with the people, the landscape, and the culture of both countries. She loves trying new things in her writing, most recently the mystery and suspense in "Nothing Personal."
Rosalind credits her rapid success to the fact that “lots of people would like to escape to New Zealand! I know I did!”
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