Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Drawn Together by Amelia Swan Main Character & Giveaway

BLURB: 
Hailey Sommers is only home from New York for a few months. So when she reconnects with the one guy she can't forget, will she be able to walk away...again?

Hailey can’t wait to get back to New York City. There she’s a hip children’s book author with a healthy social life. Being back in her hometown of Medford only reminds her of the less-than-cool girl she used to be. Until she runs into Cody, her old partner-in-crime in high school art and the boy she lusted after all four years.

Cody West has everything he could want in Medford, except Hailey. When she left for the big city, there was a hole in his life no other girl could fill. But he’s not sure he wants to open himself to the pain if she leaves again.

A chance encounter at the town coffee shop reignites the chemistry between the pair and is almost enough to make Hailey forget how much she wants to return to the city she’s grown to love. Almost. Wanting it all, Hailey plans to bring Cody back to New York with her. The only catch is that she’s not sure he’ll agree…

MAIN CHARACTER:
Hailey Sommers is a fun girl. There’s a duality in her character that makes her interesting. Throughout her school years in small town Medford, PA, she is nothing more than a nameless face. She avoided social situations and stuck to hanging out with her best friend Callie. Her love life was nonexistent. When she moved to New York City for college, she transformed into a confident girl who was comfortable going to clubs and hooking up with guys.

Like all of my characters, I have a special place in my heart for Hailey. And, like all of my other female leads, parts of her characters are born out of my own persona. I like to create characters I can relate to. It makes them more fun to write.

Like me, Hailey is a writer. That was probably the first facet of her character I developed. Also like me, Hailey wasn’t always comfortable with herself. If I were to run into someone I went to high school with, they probably wouldn’t recognize me (at least not right away). Same with Hailey. We don’t necessarily look at that different; we just carry ourselves differently. This makes for an interesting dynamic when Hailey returns to Medford a changed person.

That is basically where the similarities between us stop. I don’t like to make my characters carbon copies of myself. That just wouldn’t be any fun. I like to give them distinct qualities that are admirable or relatable to people other than me. For example, Hailey is an artist. She does all of the illustrations for the children’s books she writes. This is a trait I’m pretty jealous of. I’ve always wished I could paint or draw or paint or produce any kind of visual art. Since I can’t, I live vicariously through Hailey.

EXCERPT:
I looked up from my netbook screen and there he was: Cody West. The boy I’d lusted after throughout high school. The boy who’d changed my life and didn’t even know it.

He’d grown up since I last saw him at Jessica Mitchell’s graduation party. His sandy hair still cascaded down his forehead, but it no longer perpetually hung down over his big brown eyes. Four years of high school football had kept Cody in shape back when I knew him, but four years of college football had added a little bit of bulk to his lean frame. At least, I assumed he played in college. I knew that he headed off to Temple with a sports scholarship.

Rocking back onto his heels, Cody scanned the glass pastry case, probably looking for something sweet to accompany his coffee. He tossed his hair to the side as he inspected the contents of the case. He always liked sweets. He and I used to pass bags of candy back and forth while Mrs. Cole, our art teacher, wasn't looking. After taking a sip of my cappuccino, I smiled at the memory, glad for the first time that I was back in Medford.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Amelia Swan writes contemporary, erotic, paranormal, and new adult romance. She’s interested in characters that are smart, sincere, and somewhat artistically inclined. All of her heroines are girls she could totally see herself being friends with.

Buy Links:

GIVEAWAY:
Amelia Swan will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

The more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

11 comments:

  1. Do you have any advice for other authors on how to market their books?

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    1. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to market my books. Facebook has been a valuable advertising tool so far.

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  2. I really enjoyed this post! This sounds like an awesome book! Thank you for the great post and contest!

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  3. I loved your comments. This sounds like a really good story.

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    1. Thanks! It's one of my favorite things I've written. I hope everyone enjoys reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

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  4. Replies
    1. Thanks, Rita! I hope you'll give the book a try.

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  5. I really enjoyed the in depth description of Hailey. You really brought her to life! Thank you!

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