If you ask an author what they want out of their writing career, you will most likely hear something about making a bestseller list, royalties, or five-star reviews. And, of course, we do want those. But there are a few other things we strive to accomplish that we don’t always talk about, because while they make our hearts flutter, they may sound a bit. . . sadistic.
Evil Secret #1: We want to make people cry. Not in a bad way. But in that, you care so much for our characters you feel for them, kind of way. We want readers to gasp, laugh, and yes, cry with our characters. Tears of happiness at the end are preferred, but if there are a few misty eyes when our heroes face their darkest moments, we enjoy knowing that as well. And even if we apologize for making you weep, secretly we are delighting in the knowledge that you’ve lost yourself in our story to the point of tears. We triumph in success at your distress.
Evil Secret #2: We want to leave you dazed and overwhelmed. Tell us how shaken you were by our storylines and scenes, and we’ll offer our sympathies for making you return to work from your lunch break a little out of it. But inside we are tapping our fingers in glee. Twists, turns and impossible situations are our way of making sure you don’t get too comfortable between the pages. Rest assured it will all be fine in the end. Most of the time.
Evil Secret #3: We don’t want you to get a good night’s sleep. While rest is important for good health, and we want the best for our readers, we also love to hear how you stayed up into the wee hours of the morning because you couldn’t put our book down. Those teasers at the end of each chapter that pull you into the next chapter and the next are intentional. We’re the equivalent of literary drug dealers, getting you hooked so you can’t stop no matter what time it is. So, plan for a few snoozes and an extra cup of coffee in the morning. You can always go to bed early tomorrow night.
Evil Secret #4: We want to leave you wanting and waiting. When you finish our book--hopefully at three in the morning, surrounded by crumpled tissues and unable to fall asleep because you’re reeling by the events you’ve just read--we just might leave a snippet of what is to come in the next book. That’s right, now that we’ve immersed you in our world and you feel for our characters, you’re left to go back to reality for a few months until the next book comes out.
We may seem like normal people when you meet us, but don’t be fooled. Authors thrive on tormenting you. Sure we may be funny and even kind in public, but in our lairs *cough, I mean at our keyboards* we are planning to cause havoc in your lives for roughly three hundred pages. So, if you ever walk away from an author after sharing the suffering caused by our stories, and you think you hear the high cackle of an evil laugh, know that you’ve warmed our hearts and encouraged us to keep churning out our temptations. Sorry, not sorry. Bwahahaha!
Marian Fletcher Blackley, Duchess of Endsmere, has been on the run from the English Crown for weeks since killing her abusive husband. . . no matter that it was self-defense. She has only one safe place to go--the MacKinlay clan in Scotland, where her sister is the laird’s wife.
War Chief Cameron MacKinlay has vowed never to marry after witnessing his widowed mother’s grief. He has his lands and his clan, and that’s enough for a good life. When one day a sprite of a lass comes running out of the forest with hounds nipping at her heels and an English bounty hunter not far behind, he feels compelled to save her by claiming the disheveled duchess is his wife. But he certainly didn’t intend to marry her for real!
And now he’ll do anything to protect her. . .
Romance Historical [Entangled: Amara, On Sale: September 28, 2020, e-Book, ISBN: 979868742020 / eISBN: 9781649370570]
One very early morning, Allison B. Hanson woke up with a conversation going on in her head. It wasn't so much a dream as it was being forced awake by her imagination. Unable to go back to sleep, she gave up, went to the computer, and began writing. Years later it still hasn't stopped. Allison lives near Hershey, Pennsylvania. Her contemporary romances include paranormal, sci-fi, fantasy, and mystery suspense. She enjoys candy immensely, as well as long motorcycle rides and reading. Visit her at www.allisonbhanson.com.
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