Talk About My Favorite Authors: Karen Anders

Showing posts with label Karen Anders. Show all posts

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Karen Ander talks about Undercover Lovers

11:46 AM | by Phoebe Jordan | | | Edit Post

Well Karen Anders was interviewed on Tuesday and here is the direct link to the interview for anyone who would like to check it out. I had fun interviewing her about her writing processes and other stuff so it was great to have her guest blog about her March 2009 Harlequin Blaze novel. I also reviewed her novel Up Close and Dangerously Sexy which is the book she will be talking about today. Leave your comments with questions because Karen Anders will be stopping by on and off throughout the day to answer anyones comments with questions.

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Up Close and Dangerously Sexy marks a milestone for me. About four years ago, I decided that romantic suspense and action/adventure is where I wanted to take my writing. I write for Blaze and as most of you know, Blaze is Harlequin’s sexiest line. Therefore, I was unsure whether my editor would approve of such plotlines and characters for Blaze. Lo and behold, she told me to go for it. That came about because, at that time, we got a new senior editor, Brenda Chin and she had a strong vision for Blaze which four years later I think has come to fruition. Up Close was conceived when I was tasked by my editor to come up with a wrong bed book. Wrong bed books were made popular by the now discontinued Harlequin Temptation line. So when she asked me to do one for Blaze, I used a what if scenario—What if a kooky interior designer finds herself kidnapped out of her twin sister’s bed by a hunky undercover operative and then is asked to fill her sister’s secret agent shoes. Wrong bed, wrong sister, Oh, so right man! Writing Up Close occurred in an interesting time in my life. I had just bought my first single family home, moved into it, and my oldest daughter moved from Virginia to North Carolina to be closer to me. She brought with her a beautiful 9 month old boxer. To say that puppy was rambunctious is an understatement. Well, I have a seven year old cat and she’s mild, sweet, and loves her belly rubbed. What she didn’t love was the dog. Chaos ensued for the majority of the three months I had to write the book and the result was my daughter got her own place and moved out. By the time she and her dog moved out, I had only six weeks to write a 55,000 word book. To say I was a bit panicked is also an understatement. I don’t turn my books in late. I don’t think that’s professional. So, I got down to business and wrote the book in six weeks. The kicker is that I work a full-time job. I did have to take a few days off from my job to complete the manuscript, but the bottom line is it got done. I learned a lot from that experience. First, I learned that I could write through chaos. Second, my youngest daughter saved my life by being there to manage the dog and support me. And, third, I can do anything if I put my mind to it. So, Up Close is almost on the shelves and I’m so proud of my accomplishment. I hope that everyone who picks up the book gets as much enjoyment out of reading it as I got out of writing it. Up Close is the first book in my Undercover Lovers Miniseries. Don’t miss book #2 and #3—In Too Deep (working title) out in October 2009 and Wanted (working title) out in April 2010. I also have a sizzling summer anthology out in July 2009 titled Endless Summer with Julie Kenner and Jill Monroe and my story is titled, Surf’s Up. Visit my website for upcoming news, enter my contest for March, or sign up for my newsletter. Here’s to great reading in 2009! Thanks Phoebe for having me and for your part in supporting the romance industry and its authors! You’re the best.

Blurb of the novel:

With one of his top operatives out of commission, undercover agent (and total hotness) Drew Miller will enlist the assistance of interior designer Allie Carpenter—who will pose as her twin sister in order to bring down an arms dealer. Drew is granted clearance to bring Allie in by any means necessary…. Their mission, should they accept it, is complete deception…and absolute temptation! Here are links to Karen Anders website, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads and her eHarlequin inside scoop article.

Labels:Guest Blogger,Harlequin Blaze Series,Karen Anders | 0 Readers Comments

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Up Close and Dangerously Sexy

12:10 PM | by Phoebe Jordan | | | Edit Post

I received the advance copy of this novel, Up Close and Dangerously Sexy, in Manuscript format in the mail and so it was a tough for me to read a bunch of MS paper. So I stapled them into 4 sexions and started to read the novel, which soon got so good that I totally forgot that it wasn't an actual book I was holding. Yesterday I had Karen Ander's interviewed here on the blog and she wrote that this is the first of her Undercover Love Miniseries for Harlequin Blaze. So I was really excited to read and review this novel because first I love reading a good series and two Harlequin Blaze is a line of that I enjoy reading because they are such fun and blazingly hot reads. Allie thought she was giving her twin sister Callie's home a makeover for their birthday but it all gets turned around when her sister doesn't come home when she's supposed but a hot and sexy guy walks through the door. With one of his top operatives out of commission, undercover agent (and total hotness) Drew Miller will enlist the assistance of interior designer Allie Carpenter—who will pose as her twin sister in order to bring down an arms dealer. Allie is swept up into this whole different world that she never would have guessed her twin sister Callie lived and worked in. Drew is granted clearance to bring Allie in by any means necessary and their mission, should they accept it, is complete deception…and absolute temptation!

The hero, Drew, and the heroine, Allie, are such different people that its such a wonder how they met and started to fall in love with each other. Allis is such a wonderful character who was so easy to fall in love with and to understand. She is a wonderful and I think a very understanding and unselfish twin sister because if I were her and I learned what she did in this novel I don't think I would be brave enough to do what Allie did. Now Drew is one hot and dangerously sexy man who has many personal issues caused by his own childhood and the harst past experience in his last mission. Drew is also such a loveable character that I knew he would be good match for Allie. They both are opposites that attract one another and make it work for both of them to live a happily ever after life. As for the secondary characters in this story I really was intrigued with Allie's twin sister Callie who I know will get her own story told soon. She is the complete opposite of her sister Allie even though they are identical twins and she is in very deep in this undercover mission with the villian of the series called The Ghost. I can't wait to find out what is going to happen to her and her unknown love interest in her story that should be coming out sometime this year.

Allie's brother Max is an FBI agent and though he wasn't mentioned only a few times throughout the novel I also know he will end up getting his own love story told. He is a mystery to me and I really want to know his involvement with the villian The Ghost and I can't wait to also find out who is love interest will be too. Now there are the teammates and friends of Drews that were in this novel (Thad Michaels, Damian Frost, Leila and Jason Kyoto) that I really loved getting to know and I hope that Karen Anders ends up writing up each one a love story of their own for her Undercover Love Miniseries. I thought that they were all great characters who have their own personal issues that could be developed into fun and excitingly blazing Harlequin Blaze novels. After finishing Up Close and Dangerously Sexy I wanted more! I am now hooked to this miniseries because Karen Anders has delievered a suspenseful and blazing hot novel that I could not put down and almost got a paper cut I was turning the pages so fast. So I recommend you go out and buy this book while their on the stands because if you want to long they will be gone and then you'll be missing out on the start of a great miniseries in the Harlequin Blaze line. I give this book 4 Open Books:

Here is the description of the book from the back cover and picture: UP CLOSE AND DANGEROUSLY SEXY $ 4.99 (Book 1)(216 Pages)

Labels:Advance Readers Copy Reviews,Book Reviews,Harlequin Blaze Series,Karen Anders,Rating 4 Open Books,Requested Reviews,Undercover Lovers Miniseries | 6 Readers Comments

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Interviewing Harlequin Blaze author Karen Anders

11:28 AM | by Phoebe Jordan | | | Edit Post

Today I will be interviewing Harlequin Blaze romance author Karen Anders. She contacted me about scheduling an author interview, author guest blog as well as a book review of her upcoming release for Harlequin Blaze. I recently finished reading her upcoming March 2009 Harlequin Blaze novel called Up Close and Dangerously Sexy and will be posting my review for it tomorrow. I had fun reading it and I was so happy to have the opportunity to interview her as well as having her guest blogging this Thursday as well. I learned a lot about Karen's writing process and how she got into writing romance and I hope that you all have fun reading this interview. Leave your comments as well as questions to this post because Karen will be checking in throughout the day to answer them.

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Phoebe Jordan: When did you know that writing romance was going to be the thing that you would do with your life? Which author inspired you to start writing romance?

Karen Anders: I’m not sure that I’ve ever thought of it that way. I knew that I loved to read. It was and is still my greatest passion. Spinning out the stories I discovered I had in my head just came naturally and once I started, I didn’t want to stop. So I guess the first time I realized that this was my talent, my passion was when I got my first book, Jennifer’s Outlaw, published by Silhouette. The author that most influenced me is Nora Roberts. Her stories are so amazing. Of course, I wanted to be her when I grew up. But, now I understand who I am and what I enjoy writing.

Phoebe: Did you know what type of romance you wanted to write about or did you experiment with different genres before you chose the one that you felt was for you?

Karen: I discovered romance in my teens and fell in love with it. I read it in many genres: Historical: Shanna by Kathleen Woodiwiss, The Shadow and the Star by Laura Kinsale Science fiction: Star Commandos by P.M. Griffin, Startide Rising by David Brin Fantasy: The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip, Gandalara Series by Randall Garrett and Vicki Ann Heydron Gothic: Kirkland Revels by Victoria Holt, The Black Swan by Phyllis A. Whitney Suspense: A Coral Kissby Jayne Ann Krentz, Hot Ice by Nora Roberts With all these books I read, especially the gothic and suspense books, I discovered a taste for action/adventure and after looking in vain for what I wanted to read, I decided to start writing it myself. I was always interested in romance mixed with danger. So my first book was a historical about a young woman who goes into the desert and it was bad. I also found that researching a historical book just wasn’t my cup of tea. Then I discovered contemporaries. My first book was about 500 pages and got me the interest of an agent. From there I got published by Silhouette.

Phoebe: What was the first fiction you ever wrote? And do you still have it with you?

Karen: As I mentioned, the first book I ever wrote was about a young miss and a desert sheik that was inspired by the book my grandmother gave to me when I was sixteen, The Sheik. It took me ten years to finish that book. But, I’m afraid as my first attempt, it was quite bad. I destroyed that book at the end of the eighties and gave it a fitting burial.

Phoebe: How much research do you have to do for your novels and did it take you a long time to gather that research?

Karen: I do a lot of research on every aspect of my novels. First, I do up front research when I’m fleshing out an idea. I explore different avenues to make my story richer. Then as I’m writing the book, I do ongoing research to go into more depth and to make the story as real as possible.

Phoebe: How did you come up with the concepts for some of your upcoming novels?

Karen: Up Close and Dangerously Sexy starts my Undercover Lovers Miniseries. For the second book, I decided to create a brother for my twins. I sandwiched his book in between theirs. In this series I have a villain called The Ghost and he runs through all three books to tie them together.

Phoebe: Do you have a process of how you start to write your novels?

Karen: I’m a synopsis girl, so when I go to write my stories, I consult my synopsis. I open the synopsis with a scene that puts the reader right into the action. That’s where the story starts—and it’s the most interesting and thrilling part.

Phoebe: Which do you like best, writing a series or writing stand alone novels? How is writing each different for you?

Karen: I like writing both types of novels. A series has to be carefully thought out before writing. Since the books interact, I want to make sure that all my ducks are in a row and I have all the characters worked out. In a stand alone, I don’t have to do as much up front work.

Phoebe: What process did you have to go through to get your first book published and did it take you long?

Karen: To get my first book published, I pretty much just started sending it one at a time to agents. When I realized how long that was going to take, I started doing mass mailings. That worked out well for me because on my fourth try, I got an agent. He then sold it to Silhouette within a month or two. I will say that my first time out of the gate was blessed. I didn’t know how hard it was to get an agent and I didn’t know how hard it was then to get published. So ignorance is bliss as they say.

Phoebe: How did you feel when you finally saw your first published book came out and how do you feel about your other novels being published?

Karen: Seeing my first book in print with the beautiful cover that Silhouette did was a dream come true. I felt so satisfied, so validated. Other than the births of my two children, it was the most exciting thing that has ever happened to me.

Phoebe: How do you handle your writing schedule and your personal life without going insane?

Karen: That is a challenge as I work a full time job and do my writing on the side. It’s all about focus. I have a certain number of pages that I must do per week and I stay on track as much as I can. I juggle everything else. When I need support, my youngest daughter helps me out tremendously. I don’t know what I would do without her.

Phoebe: What do you do to relax after having spent a long while writing?

Karen: I watch TV or read. I especially love playing an online game called World of Warcraft. Its loads of fun.

Phoebe: Do you have any hobbies?

Karen: Yes, I paint in watercolors and Chinese brush paintings. I will eventually have stuff up for sale on my website in the future. As soon as I have some spare time in my writing schedule to paint.

Phoebe: Is there any advice that you would give to an aspiring romance writer that you wish someone had given you?

Karen: Study the craft and hone that craft every day. Read, attend workshops, online classes. Write everyday if you can manage it and find a good critique group. Don’t be discouraged and keep persisting.

Phoebe: Is there any writing tips, research tips, promotion and marketing tips that you would give to an aspiring romance writer that you wish someone had given you?

Karen: Writing tips: Learn how to write a good, thorough synopsis. Study goal, motivation and conflict and make sure that it’s in your story. Research tips: Don’t skimp here. Do thorough research on what you’re writing about. It adds realistic flavor to your character and your story. Promotion tips: See the blog that I did for Caren Johnson. Its chock full of suggestions, but mostly for category books. Marketing tips: Discover who you are within the industry. Brand yourself. Take a look at my new revamped website to see what I mean. I’ve branded myself as a romantic suspense author writing urban stories.

Phoebe: Now for a question that I have been meaning to ask an author. Do you have a favorite genre you like to read? Who is your favorite author(s)?

Karen: I love reading romantic suspense, action/adventure, and science fiction/fantasy. Some of my favorite authors are Karen Rose, Nora Roberts, Lisa Scottoline, Donna Kauffman, Amy J. Fetzer, Kim Harrison, Patty O’Shea, and Laurell K. Hamilton.

Labels:Harlequin Blaze Series,Interview,Karen Anders | 3 Readers Comments