Welcome, Renee, can you tell us a little about yourself?
I am the only female in a house full of giants (husband and two teenage boys) so my life tends to be full of dirt, grease and all things disgusting. Writing romance is my escape from testosterone.
I love being outside, camping, snowmobiling and now I just got my first wheeling rig so I don’t have to sit in the passenger seat anymore. I have a strange fascination with old movies. I love the black and white films. Add Gene Autry with a dance sequence and you have my undivided attention. Come on, admit it, he had a great A$$. I think it’s all the glamor. I am lucky if I get my hair up in a ponytail before my day starts, so the era of girdles, false eyelashes and fab shoes. What’s not to like?
I met my husband in an insane asylum. Luckily we both had keys since we both worked there. I live for my kids, but they are teenagers and hate it. LOL That’s about all I can think of to tell you about myself.
Tell us about CHANGES IN AUTUMN and where we can find it.
CHANGES IN AUTUMN is a six chapter Werewolf Romance. This Novella stands apart from other werewolf stories of the popular genre in that it chronicles the changes Autumn goes through to become a werewolf, physically, mentally and spiritually. One of those changes happens to be meeting and claiming her mate.
It will be available on October 31st at The Wild Rose Press.
Do you have a favorite character or one that you identify most with?
Autumn’s back injury was personal. I suffered a back injury in my twenties and the recovery was long and frustratingly restrictive.
Describe your writing in three words.
Fast-paced, passionate and twisted. Although I love the journey of a story, I do not enjoy stories where I find myself tapping my fingers waiting for the author to get on with it. I want to be whisked away on a rollercoaster ride that blindsides me just as I think everything is safe. I want a wild ride that leaves me breathless for more when I close the cover. So, that is what I try to provide my readers.
Why did you choose your genre?
I don’t really know, it’s just always been that way. As a child when I played Barbies, they were being chased by monsters, the part played by my stuffed animals. In third grade when all the other little girls were reading about princesses and fuzzy animals, I was checking out books about ghosts and mythical legends from the library. My favorite fairy tale was beauty and the beast and I always got a little sad when he turned back into a Prince at the end. Growing up, the stranger the romance the more captivated I was.
Paranormal romance just suited me.
Where do you get your ideas?
Ahhh, the muse. Would it be wrong to say I don’t have a muse? It’s more like something will strike me and I get a picture or a scene in my head, then I start asking…What if?
How do you do your research?
For me research is the fun part. I love to learn about new stuff. My poor kids have been drug to every museum the West Coast has to offer, but they’ve never been to Disney Land.
Usually my research ends up looking a lot like an unraveled afghan. I tend to pick at a thread until I get distracted by another. As a result I end up surrounded by piles of information and I have to sort through it all to see what is useful and what is not. The really great part is, if it’s not useful now, it will be later.
What advice would you give to the new/unpublished author?
The best advice I ever got was from an agent who once told me you cannot write in a vacuum. You need other authors. You NEED to network, join groups, become part of the community. I was afraid to. Afraid I was not ready and they would laugh at my dreams. What I found was a collection of authors in different stages of their careers, some ahead of me some behind, some even passed me by on the journey (no day job to take up their time), but everyone was eager to congratulate, commiserate and teach what they knew. My writing and my career really took off when I jumped in the pool to play.
What’s next for you?
I have signed a contract for my next book for which we have yet to settle on a title. It is a Romance that takes place amidst a Zombie Apocalypse. Not to worry, there is no Zombie Lovin’ (the question has come up in conversation). The hero and heroine are on the run trying to save the world before everyone becomes zombies. What they learn is that the future lies in them and their growing love for one another.
Where can we find you on the web?
Thank you for asking. My web site is
www.reneecharles.net
I have started a collection of useful links and blogs for readers, authors and romance enthusiasts to check out.
http://www.facebook.com/ReneeCharlesAuthor
Not to worry if you follow me on Facebook, I am frugal with the posts. I don’t think everyone needs to know what I am having for dinner, but I will tell you where I am guest blogging next or about my latest contest.
https://twitter.com/RCharlesWriter
Okay, I am going to be honest here. I have not figured out the whole hash-tag thing with
Twitter. I tweet occasionally, but am still learning the ins and outs of hash tags. I follow some great paranormal stuff though and that alone might be worth the click. Just saying…
Is there anything you would like to ask our readers?
Yes, what’s your number? No get your head outta the gutter, not that number. I want to know how much you read? A book a day? A book a week? A book a year? What’s your number? I have read conflicting information on this topic that says the voracious reader is a myth. Is it true? I read a book a month roughly, but do quite a bit of technical reading and critiquing others’ work in between.
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Ex-animal control officer, Autumn Reynolds always had a soft spot for injured animals. So when one shows up on her porch with a gunshot wound, she has no choice but to help it. But she gets caught in the maelstrom when the injured wolf turns out to be a hot werewolf and the shooter comes back to finish the job. Now she's going to become a wolf, or die trying. Fortunately, she has her own Alpha-male who owes her one. However, Autumn fears if she does survive, she might lose her heart in the process.
Conner Grayson owes the beautiful woman his life and feels obligated to help her through her first change. Though he recognizes her as his mate, as her Alpha, he won’t deny Autumn the right to choose once she becomes a wolf. That is, if he can resist the overwhelming need to claim her as his own.
Excerpt:
“I will not do this to you. The change has begun
and you...you have to choose your mate.” His words
came between short ragged breaths. “If we make love,
you will no longer have a choice.”
“There’s always a choice.” Even as the words left
her mouth, her body denied it. She hummed with an
awareness of him that could not be ignored.
He shook his head. “Stay in the water until your
skin doesn’t itch anymore. I’m going to put a couple of
steaks on for us.” The click of the door closing behind
him when he left her alone echoed through her aching
body.
Autumn refused to believe that what she felt wasn’t
real. She was so aware of him that she could feel him
leave the next room after he got dressed. Her awareness
of him was like a rubber band that stretched tighter and
thinner the further he moved away from her. If what he
said was true, she feared it was too late. She’d already
chosen.
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