Goddess On The Run by Marne Ann Kirk
A Tale of the Holy Water Warriors, Book One
Genre: Paranormal
Romance
Publisher: Crescent
Moon Press
Number of pages:
316
Word Count: 91,200
words
Cover Artist: Taria
Reed
Book Description:
All Fomorian Hells
are about to break loose on earth, making human souls the daily special, if the
Tuatha de Danaan can’t stop it.
Teagan, a Celtic
demi-goddess hiding from her destiny in small-town Colorado, wants nothing to
do with her mother’s forgotten realm or the drama of a battle of the gods. And
Merric is forbidden fruit she’s too smart to taste.
Merric, leader of
the Tuatha de Danaan warriors, has other plans. Teagan holds the key to
salvation, for both him and their worlds, whether she wants to or not. He’ll do
whatever it takes to convince her of her duty.
But can he find the
key to her heart?
Interview:
1. Where did you get the idea for the novel?
Well first, I love Paranormal romance. I love the strong, sassy heroine and the alpha male who has to learn something. Also, I feel there is more freedom for world-building when writing a series, and Paranormal romance lends itself to this idea well. Now, I have seven children, most of which are adults. One of my daughters worked, for a time, in a very nice Gentleman’s Club in the south. The stories she’d share with me every day…well, you wouldn’t believe. The idea of Teagan and Goddess on the Run kind of grew up out of these stories.
2. Your title. Who came up with it? Did you ever change your title?
I did change my title. When I first wrote the story it was “Love? Please! A Tale of the Holy Water Warriors.” However, I have a fantasy romance series, The Fae Dragon Chronicles, and all of the stories in that series begin with “Love.” There’s “Love Chosen,” then “Love Dared,” and “Love Desired.” So my publisher, Crescent Moon Press, suggested finding a title for the first book in the Holy Water Warrior series that was a little different. We brainstormed, and came up with Goddess on the Run.
3. Which came first, the title or the novel?
The novel came first.
4. Since becoming a writer, what’s the most exciting thing to ever happen to you?
The most exciting thing, so far, since becoming a writer…that’s tough. Every step on this road has been exciting! The first completed story, my first contest final, my first time placing first in a contest, my first contract, my first cover, my first book held in my hands, my first review…and then to do those things again with the next book. Every experience is amazing.
5. What book are you currently reading or what was the last book you read?
Betrayed by the Gods, by Cassandra Cade
6. What was your first book that you ever wrote (very first one you wrote, not published)?
Oh…It was called The Heart of Torkana, and I LOVED this story! It was a fantasy romance, about the leader of a dying planet finding a new home for his people; except a defiant race who call it home stands in his way, and the queen is determined to thwart his plans.
7. What is your writing process?
Um…I really need to work on this. Up until now, I’ve always gone for weeks or months without writing, only to have a story pour out in a matter of a two month time. Then I edit, for about three to six months. Now, I’m trying to train myself to be more productive, more set in a routine. Another thing, I’ve always written my first draft in long hand. I’ve tried to type that first draft into the computer, and it just doesn’t work for me. I’m far more creative when I have pen and paper. I don’t know why…
8. Who are your favorite authors of all time?
Oooh, an easy question! Kresley Cole, Christine Feehan, Sherrilyn Kenyon, and Gena Showalter for romance; Edgar Allen Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Joyce Carol Oates for American literature; Frost or Whitman for poetry; and Shakespeare, Shelley, or Dickens for Classics. (Can you tell I’m a reader?)
9. At a book signing, do you just sign your name or do you write a note? How do you come up with stuff to say?
I write a note and then sign my name. If I’ve made a connection with the reader, I make the note more personal.
10. What is something people would be surprised to know about you?
I will spend hours going through a case of Hot Wheels at the store, looking for one my husband doesn’t have.
11. How do you react to a bad review?
I thank the reviewer for taking the time to review my book. People have different tastes and opinions, and not everyone is going to love the same things.
12. How did you celebrate the sale of your first book?
My husband got me two Shih-Tzu puppies. They were brothers and we were only going to get one, but we couldn’t separate them. We named them Loki and Thor, and they fit their names so well.
Well first, I love Paranormal romance. I love the strong, sassy heroine and the alpha male who has to learn something. Also, I feel there is more freedom for world-building when writing a series, and Paranormal romance lends itself to this idea well. Now, I have seven children, most of which are adults. One of my daughters worked, for a time, in a very nice Gentleman’s Club in the south. The stories she’d share with me every day…well, you wouldn’t believe. The idea of Teagan and Goddess on the Run kind of grew up out of these stories.
2. Your title. Who came up with it? Did you ever change your title?
I did change my title. When I first wrote the story it was “Love? Please! A Tale of the Holy Water Warriors.” However, I have a fantasy romance series, The Fae Dragon Chronicles, and all of the stories in that series begin with “Love.” There’s “Love Chosen,” then “Love Dared,” and “Love Desired.” So my publisher, Crescent Moon Press, suggested finding a title for the first book in the Holy Water Warrior series that was a little different. We brainstormed, and came up with Goddess on the Run.
3. Which came first, the title or the novel?
The novel came first.
4. Since becoming a writer, what’s the most exciting thing to ever happen to you?
The most exciting thing, so far, since becoming a writer…that’s tough. Every step on this road has been exciting! The first completed story, my first contest final, my first time placing first in a contest, my first contract, my first cover, my first book held in my hands, my first review…and then to do those things again with the next book. Every experience is amazing.
5. What book are you currently reading or what was the last book you read?
Betrayed by the Gods, by Cassandra Cade
6. What was your first book that you ever wrote (very first one you wrote, not published)?
Oh…It was called The Heart of Torkana, and I LOVED this story! It was a fantasy romance, about the leader of a dying planet finding a new home for his people; except a defiant race who call it home stands in his way, and the queen is determined to thwart his plans.
7. What is your writing process?
Um…I really need to work on this. Up until now, I’ve always gone for weeks or months without writing, only to have a story pour out in a matter of a two month time. Then I edit, for about three to six months. Now, I’m trying to train myself to be more productive, more set in a routine. Another thing, I’ve always written my first draft in long hand. I’ve tried to type that first draft into the computer, and it just doesn’t work for me. I’m far more creative when I have pen and paper. I don’t know why…
8. Who are your favorite authors of all time?
Oooh, an easy question! Kresley Cole, Christine Feehan, Sherrilyn Kenyon, and Gena Showalter for romance; Edgar Allen Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Joyce Carol Oates for American literature; Frost or Whitman for poetry; and Shakespeare, Shelley, or Dickens for Classics. (Can you tell I’m a reader?)
9. At a book signing, do you just sign your name or do you write a note? How do you come up with stuff to say?
I write a note and then sign my name. If I’ve made a connection with the reader, I make the note more personal.
10. What is something people would be surprised to know about you?
I will spend hours going through a case of Hot Wheels at the store, looking for one my husband doesn’t have.
11. How do you react to a bad review?
I thank the reviewer for taking the time to review my book. People have different tastes and opinions, and not everyone is going to love the same things.
12. How did you celebrate the sale of your first book?
My husband got me two Shih-Tzu puppies. They were brothers and we were only going to get one, but we couldn’t separate them. We named them Loki and Thor, and they fit their names so well.
Excerpt:
Chapter
One
Great. Just
fan-friggen-tabulous. Not even halfway through her shift and Teagan had an
ass-grabber.
Another one.
Of course, this moron's lack of
respect for personal boundaries was why she'd gotten this table of five. The
girls had named her The Enforcer for a reason.
She'd let him play for a moment.
He wasn't hurting her, after all. But soon he'd pay, and she'd make certain it did hurt him.
Yep, a little public
humiliation, and he’d never touch another lady without her permission again.
But first, money. A girl had to
have her priorities.
"Can I get you boys
anything else?" she asked, setting a Corona in front of each of them.
The Friday night band sang
their standard classic, "Friends in Low Places," and several patrons
whooped or sang along. Lively crowd tonight--at least a couple hundred cowboys,
college kids, tourists, and locals were bound to mean good tips. Everyone was
lookin' for love.
Blondie, the man sitting across
the table from where she stood, smiled and tossed down a hundred dollar bill.
"Tequila shots?"
Mr. Hands, on her left, inched
his grope further up the back of her inner thigh. If he went any higher, he'd
be fondling parts of her only seen by her doctor and her vibrator.
She snapped her teeth into a
grin, ignoring Mr. Hands, as she pulled the Jose Gold from one holster on her
costume’s gun-slinger's belt and six shot glasses from the cartridge loops on
the other hip. Between the rowdy saloon atmosphere and the waitressing
costumes--leather vest, gunfighter's belt over short-shorts, Stetson cowboy hat
and boots--it was no surprise Tommie's Knockers drew the largest crowd in the
Canyon.
Someone cursed a stream of
words his mama would’ve washed his mouth out for, on the other side of the main
stage. Chaos exploded in the far section of the bar as a chair shattered and a
beer bottle exploded--probably on some poor fool’s head. A girl screamed and Teagan straightened up,
glancing over. The bouncers didn’t need her help, though. Six were already
hustling over and stepping in, pulling two men apart and bringing things back
to order. It was under control.
So why did she feel on edge
tonight? Like all hells were about to break loose.
"If you're buying one for
me too, sugar," she said, shaking it off and bringing her attention back
to Blondie.
When he nodded, she twisted the
cap off the bottle, pouring tequila into each glass before sliding them around.
The shot glass she slid to Mr. Hands barely stayed on the table. Damn. She'd hoped to distract him from
his blind-man's examination of her butt--no such luck.
Nope. Yesteryear’s Quarterback
just kept on going with one hand, like her backside was his winning season’s
playbook.
She lifted her shot, saluted
the men, and tossed it back. Oh, it burned good. Too bad her kind couldn't get
drunk on human alcohol. She could use a little something right now. Something
to dull the sudden itch along her spine, urging her to run without motive. She
wasn't fooled. Whenever she had that itch, there was a reason.
She forced herself to smile at
Blondie as she set her shooter back on the table, then tipped her head so she
could surreptitiously study the bar through the shield of her bangs.
Several men milled about the
dance floor, looking uncomfortable and awkward, while couples danced the
two-step around them. Nothing out of place about that in a bar.
Blondie slid the Franklin
across the table and tapped her hand. "Keep the change."
"Why thanks, baby. If you
need anything at all, raise your hand. See the brunette, Kelly, over by the
bar? She'll see to your every need." Teagan slipped the bill into a pocket
inside her vest.
Time to play enforcer, and just
in time. She needed to clean this mess up and go on break, if for no other
reason than to unwind and figure out why she felt this strung out. If she were
human, she’d worry she’d been slipped something, she was so twitchy.
Was it a full moon tonight?
She turned to face Mr. Hands,
leaning down slow and low, until his eyes were level with her cleavage.
He grabbed the sides of his
chair, leaning closer to her.
Right where she wanted his
hands--off her body.
She let her hair fall over one
shoulder. "Sweetie, sometimes a little naughty is nice, but every so
often, naughty goes, well, too far. Then it’s time for a little lesson in
manners. Are you up for a--” She licked her upper lip, sliding her hand up his
thigh until she almost brushed the bulge in his jeans. “Lesson?”
He flushed, throwing a
victorious grin at his friends. "With a body as hot as you? Hell, you can
teach me manners any time."
She brought her mouth to his
ear as the band finished their song. Perfect
timing.
"Then here's lesson one,
hon," she said in a stage whisper all his buddies would hear. She wrapped
his package in her palm and squeezed her hand into a fist around it--hard.
"Touch me or one of the
other girls again--," she tightened her grip even more.
His eyes bulged in pain, but he
sat frozen in place. Men tended to do that when you had them by the baby
brains.
"One more time, and I’ll
tear your nut sack from your body and feed it to an alley cat."
Such language, but some jerks
were also stupid and only understood crass.
Keeping him firmly in hand, she
looked at his friends and tilted her head. "I'd feed it to the dog, but
she'd barely notice the swallow."
Giveaway:
Author Bio:
Marne Ann Kirk grew
up wild, exploring the vast high deserts and mountains of the West with her
family as a child. Marne Ann loved making up stories and, well, lied about just
about everything. Thankfully, she grew out of the lying stage...now she calls
it story-telling.
Her debut novel,
“Love Chosen: Book One of The Fae Dragon Chronicles,” is available now. “Love
Dared: Book Two of The Fae Dragon Chronicles,” is coming soon. “Goddess on the
Run,” a paranormal romance, will be available September 17, 2012. You can find
out more about Marne Ann through her publisher, Crescent Moon Press, or visit
her at: www.marneannkirk.com or www.cowboysndragonscafe.blogspot.com
Twitter: MarneAnn
Facebook: www.facebook.com/marneannkirk
Goodreads: Marne
Ann Kirk or http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5822484.Marne_Ann_Kirk
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