SEELIE KAY: Postcards from The Ledge: The week in The Loft: Author Amber Daulton!

Joining me today in The Loft is author Amber Daulton. The author of the romantic-suspense series, Arresting Onyx, and several standalone novellas, Amber writes sexy stories with heart. Her books are available in eBook, print on demand, audio, and foreign language formats. When she’s not writing, Amber reads, obsesses over her herb bed--she actually has some plants growing this year-- or binges her favorite TV shows, Supernatural and Star Trek: TNG. Amber lives in North Carolina with her husband and demanding cats.

Author Amber Daulton

S: Good morning, Amber. Thanks for joining me today!

Historical romance dramas have become quite popular on television. If you were suddenly transported back to Victorian England as a member of the aristocracy, would you thrilled or appalled? Would you be willing to stay there permanently?

A: Ooh, I’m not sure. At first, I would be thrilled. As a member of the aristocracy, I would have beautiful gowns, servants to attend me, and I’d get to go to lavish parties. On the other hand, as a high-born lady, I would have very little say in my own life. I would be subject to the whim of my father, brother, or husband, and I would be expected to keep house, have babies, and stay silent. Granted, not all romantic relationships of the time were so cold and strict, so if I would find a forward-thinking gentleman who has a healthy respect for women, then I might seriously consider staying in Victorian England.

S: I'm with you on that! I'd enjoy the elegance of that life, but I'd probably strap a stiletto to my hip to deal with men who have bad attitudes toward women. Then I would be writing from a jail cell!

Do you write in genres other than romance?

A: No, but perhaps in another life, I could write crime books. I already write romantic suspense, so it wouldn’t be a hard stretch to ditch the romance angle.

S: What do people get wrong about writing romance?

A: A lot of people think it’s cliché and full of toxic heroes with gleaming muscles and waif-like beauties without an original thought in their heads. These naysayers have probably never read from the genre. Romance books are more than just romance these days, more than broad-shouldered men and clingy women. They focus on family problems, friendships, careers, personal demons, and hope. The villains are often sympathetic, and sometimes you even root for them. There’s action and tears, everything that makes up a blockbuster movie.

S: Exactly. Many romance stories reflect real life situations. It's not all fantasy.

If you had to do it all over again, would you still choose to write books?

A: Yes, but I would like to go into it with more knowledge about what to expect. Writing is a difficult profession for several reasons, one of which is that you can’t just slap words on a piece of paper and call it done. You have to fine tune those words several times over to make them great, but that doesn’t mean everyone will love what you wrote. Beyond marketing the book, I think editing is the most difficult part of the writing/publication process. That said, I still wouldn’t trade this career for anything.

S: What’s the best advice you have ever been given?

A: Just keep trying even when you’re feeling bad about yourself and the quality of your work. No one is perfect. Don’t rush a project. Give it the love and attention it needs to be the best it can be. You as the writer, the book itself, and the readers deserve it.

S: What inspired your latest book, "Ryan’s Temptation?"

A: I never meant to write the Arresting Onyx series. Book 1, "Arresting Mason," started as a single book, but the secondary characters demanded stories of their own, so I kept writing. Before long, I had a trilogy on my hands. But that wasn’t enough either. As I was writing the last book, a pestering little voice in the back of my head told me to go back and squeeze in two novellas. You see, I’d introduced two secondary characters in book 1 and let them return in book 3, but I didn’t give them a chance to shine in their own story. Deep inside me, I just couldn’t accept that. These two women, Chanel and Shea, are wonderful friends to Mia, the heroine in "Arresting Mason." They deserved a story of their own. So after a little re-writing of books 2, 3, and 4, I wrote two novellas and marked them as books 2.5, "Ryan’s Temptation" and 3.5, "Trevor’s Redemption." All the books in this series include the men’s names, but I chose a different format for the novellas to help readers differentiate between them and the full-length novels.

S: Is there anything special you would like people to know about "Ryan’s Temptation?"

A: It was previously published in a multi-author box set, but now the set is off sale, and the rights to my individual story have reverted to me. You can find it available for pre-order at Amazon and several other online retailers. It’s only .99 cents during the pre-order period, so reserve your copy now before the price goes up.

Here's the blurb--

Wrong place, wrong time. Now she’s running for her life.

Beautician Chanel Leroc can wield a pair of scissors like nobody’s business. After she witnesses a murder and lands on a serial killer’s hit list, she has to figure out how to protect herself—and fast. The killer tracks her down, but her sexy new neighbor, Dr. Ryan Naylor, drives the brute off.

The police dump the pair in a witness protection program, which doesn’t last long. Either the killer has a connection to the police, or he’s far more intelligent than they realize. All Chanel wants to do is get back to her safe life and get to know her neighbor better. Instead, she and Ryan hit the road and try to survive on their own.

How will they stay alive and keep their blooming romance intact with the killer hot on their trail?