Interview & Giveaway with Alannah Lynne

Hi everyone! Please welcome author Alannah Lynne to My Secret Romance Book Reviews!

Alannah, thank you for allowing me to interview you and I am so happy to have you with us today. Thank you so much for having!!!

Can you tell us a little about your background?

It’s not writing! LOL I have a degree in accounting (which I hate), and I worked in advertising/marketing for over 10 (that, I love). When I was in college, my dad made me promise I would get a degree in something. I didn’t go to school for the first two weeks of the semester and I didn’t go the last month, but I somehow still managed to pass my accounting class. And that’s how I picked my degree! :-D Sad, but true. I’m definitely much more suited to creative careers than accounting.

Besides writing, what are some of your favorite things to do? Do you have any hobbies?

I used to do a lot of ceramics and faux painting, but since we moved into a smaller house, I don’t have room for any of my supplies. I’ve tried working with polymer clay, but haven’t really mastered that. I like scrapbooking, and I’m starting to get into beading. I want to make book thongs for my street team.

How would you describe the Heat Wave series to a new reader?

Hot!! :-D All of the stories take place in coastal locations, mostly North and South Carolina. I’m not sure if future books will be located elsewhere, but for now, they’re all in the Carolinas. They’re stand-alone (meaning you can read them out of order and you won’t miss anything), but they’re all loosely connected, and the characters do make appearances in subsequent books. I like to be able to check in with them and see what’s going on in their lives, even after we’ve moved on to other stories.

How many books are you planning for the Heat Wave series?

I’m not sure yet, but I know there will be at least 5 more.

Who or what was your inspiration to begin writing this series?

I’m not really sure where the inspiration came from, but Erik talked to me for years before I figured out what I was supposed to do with him. (There’s plenty I would’ve LOVED to do to him, if I could’ve figured out how to get him out of my imagination! LOL) I kept seeing him in all these different scenes (most of which didn’t end up in the book), but I wasn’t writing at the time –I hadn’t even considered being a writer because I thought I had to be something... more, I guess, than what I was (I thought I needed an English degree, or writing degree, or something)... so I didn’t know what to do with him. :-D I live along the coast, and love the beach, so once I started writing, that just sort of ended up being the backdrop for my stories. When I decided to self-publish, I wanted a series, so I got my rights back (it had been previously published), I used “Savin’ Me” as the launching point, and figured out a way to tie the other books in with it.

We have been introduced so many different characters so far in the three books; Steve, Elise, Lizbeth and Callie to name a few. Will they be having their own books in the future?

Definitely! Callie (“Last Call”) is up next. Her book will be out sometime in 2013 (maybe late summer/early fall). I thought Steve would’ve already had his HEA by now, but I keep putting it off because I’m a little nervous about writing his story. I already know how his story starts, and he’s NOT in a good place. Robbie (Sunny’s brother from “Last Call”) will also have his own book. Kevin’s sister, Marianne (“Crossing Lines”) will have a story. I’m not sure yet what to do with Elise and Lizbeth. LOL I imagine they will end up with their own stories (I’ll feel bad if they don’t redeem themselves and get their HEA’s too), I’m just not sure yet how that will happen for them.

Which book has been the hardest for you to write so far?

“Savin’ Me!” I rewrote it from start to finish four times! I rewrote it three times before it was published the first time. Then, after I got my rights back, I retyped the entire thing, updating it with my current voice as I went. I wrote “Last Call” for the Kensington Writing With the Stars Contest in two months. That wasn’t easy, but writing the book itself wasn’t hard. “Crossing Lines” was hard because of the pressure I put on myself. The reviews of both “Savin’ Me” and “Last Call” have been so great, I was terrified of it not living up to those previous stories. But it wasn’t torturous like “Savin’ Me.”

Are you working on anything currently?

I think I shared some of this with you the other day, but yeah... I’m always working on something! LOL I’m currently working on a BDSM series and hope to release the first three short stores in that series in the late spring/early summer. Callie’s book is simmering in the back of my mind. I also have a mystery that I’m determined to get written by the summer. I had started writing it with my uncle and when he passed away, I sort of lost the passion for it. But I want to finish it, and so this is the year! Dammit!!

What are some of your favorite authors and/or books?

Janelle Denison is my all-time favorite, and the reason I write. I was a late bloomer to romance, and her book, “The Wilde Side” was the first romance I ever read. I was instantly hooked and gobbled up everything of hers I could find. She was also my inspiration for becoming a writer. I always joke and say I want to be Janelle when I grow up. JR Ward and the Black Dagger Brotherhood series is also at the top of my list. Recently, I’ve really gotten into Shayla Black and Lexi Blake’s Virgin series. I don’t have much time to read anymore, and I really miss it.

Please state one random fact about yourself that no one would have guessed about you.

Oh gosh... Hmmm... Well, there’s a lot of me in Sam (“Crossing Lines”). My dad owned a construction company and I hung out with him whenever I could. He taught me to drive when I was ten, and by the time I was thirteen, I was driving his dump trucks around. We lived in a rural area, so I even drove on the roads when I was that young. It wasn’t right, but if I wanted to run to the little country store out on the highway for a Pepsi, I’d jump in the dump truck, drive it about 5 miles down the road to the store, pull off the side of the highway and park with the other truckers. I’m pretty sure I was their entertainment! LOL

Thank you again for the interview, I hope that our readers will love your Heat Wave series as much as I have.

I hope so too!!! I’m glad you enjoyed the books, and thank you, again, for the invitation!

Alannah has decided to give a copy of one of her Heat Wave books away to one lucky reader.  The book will be your choice! Please leave your email address in the comment to win!!