• Jerusha Agen, “Midnight Clear”
• Mary Alford, “Christmas in the Crosshairs”
• Lori Altebaumer, “Silenced Night”
• Danielle Grandinetti, “Escape with the Prodigal”
• Sarah Hamaker, “Christmas Cold Case”
• Kendall Hoxsey “An Imminent Christmas Threat”
• Pat O’Brien, “Deadly School Break”
• Hope Welborn, “Hidden”
• Terry Weldon, “Murdered by Christmas”

“My books are based in Florida and Florida’s a great place to base your books,” Mary says. “It seems like weird and crazy crimes are committed in Florida. There are also a lot of things in Florida that can kill you—sinkholes, gators, hurricanes. There are a lot of hazards in Florida.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Hunt for a Hometown Killer.

Connect w/Mary
Website: www.marydodgeallen.com

“Some things can be fiction,” Patricia said. “In my very first series, I moved the Tennessee River down close to Memphis.”

“With the Secret Service, I have done as much research as I can, but it’s the Secret Service—they’re not going to tell me everything,” Lynn said. “I’m going to have to use my imagination.”

Patricia is a Carol finalist and winner of an Inspirational Readers’ Choice Award in Suspense, and three anthologies that included her stories debuted on the USA Today Best Seller List. She and her two cats call Northeast Mississippi home—the South is also where she sets most of her books. Her romantic suspense novels include the Logan Point series and the Memphis Cold Case Novels. Crosshairs, the third book in the Natchez Trace Park Rangers series, released November 2021. She is now hard at work on the fourth book, Deception.

Writing workshops include American Christian Fiction Writers online courses, workshops at the Mid-South Christian Writer’s Conference, the KenTen Retreat where she was also the keynote, Memphis American Christian Fiction Writer group, and the Bartlett Christian Writers group. When she has time, she likes to throw mud on a wheel and see what happens.

Connect w/Patricia
Website: https://ptbradley.com/
Blog: https://ptbradley.com/blog/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/patriciabradleyauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PTBradley1
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2S6DKGY
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/patricia-bradley
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7789445.Patricia_Bradley
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ptbradley1/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ptbradley/

Lynn loves writing romantic suspense because her childhood fantasy was to become a spy, but her grown-up reality is that she’s a huge chicken and would have been caught on her first mission. She prefers to live vicariously through her characters and loves putting them into all kinds of terrifying situations while she’s sitting at home safe and sound in her pajamas!

Lynn’s titles have won the Carol Award, the Selah Award, and the Faith, Hope, and Love Reader’s Choice Award. Her newest series kicked off in March 2021 with Unknown Threat, a 2021 Christy Award finalist. She is a frequent conference speaker and has taught writers all over the country. Lynn lives in South Carolina with her true love and their three children.

Connect w/Lynn
Website: https://lynnhblackburn.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LynnHBlackburn/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LynnHBlackburn/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lynnhblackburn/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynnhblackburn/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10631390.Lynn_Huggins_Blackburn

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus teasers for Crosshairs and Malicious Intent.

“It’s because we live in a dangerous and unpredictable world, and there’s a lot of people out there who are afraid,” DiAnn says. “And they often turn to fiction for an adventure. … The goal is to show the reader that yes, we live in this dangerous and unpredictable world, but there are trained people who will do whatever it takes to keep us safe and to prevent crimes from happening.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Trace of Doubt.

Connect w/DiAnn
Website: https://diannmills.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diannmills
Twitter: https://twitter.com/diannmills
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diannmillsauthor/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diannmills/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/diannmills/_created/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/diannmills
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/diann-mills
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/81639.DiAnn_Mills

“I used to do collections, where I based the books around the same town,” Susan said. “But then I thought … I should think more like a TV show like Dr. Who. There’s a thread that goes through Dr. Who that pushes us the story, so even though every episode has its own story arc, there’s also a series arc.”

“I usually do not have an overarching thread throughout the series books,” Lynette said. “I tend to wrap everything up in each book. What I do that’s very similar is that I make sure I have the series planned out, that I have other characters I can pull from the stories to create novellas with or write other stories about.”

Lynette is the bestselling author of the Danger Never Sleeps, Blue Justice, Women of Justice, Deadly Reunions, Hidden Identity, and Elite Guardians series. She is the winner of three ACFW Carol Awards, the Selah Award, and the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award, among others. She is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and has a master’s degree in education from Converse College. Eason lives in South Carolina with her husband and two children.

Connect w/Lynette
Website: www.lynetteeason.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/lynette.eason
Twitter: @lynetteeason

Susan is the USA Today bestselling author of more than 85 novels with more than 1 million books sold, including the Global Search and Rescue and the Montana Rescue series. Winner of a RITA Award and multiple Christy and Carol Awards, as well as the HOLT Medallion and numerous Readers’ Choice Awards, Susan makes her home in Minnesota.

Connect w/Susan
Website: www.susanmaywarren.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SusanMayWarrenFiction
Twitter: @susanmaywarren

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus teasers for Sunrise and Life Flight.

“This is the hardest book that I have ever written,” Carrie says about Behind Love’s Wall. “I do normally plot my novels, and with this one I did also, especially the back-and-forth part. … My husband and son are good brainstorming partners too.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Behind Love’s Wall.

Connect w/Carrie
Website: www.carriefancettpagels.com
Blogs: Overcoming With God and Colonial Quills
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Carrie-Fancett-Pagels
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cfpagels
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/carriefpagels/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7043690.Carrie_Fancett_Pagels
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carrie-fancett-pagels-09303538
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Carrie-Fancett-Pagels/e/B00C2ZMLBM/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/carrie-fancett-pagels
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carriefancettpagels/
Newsletter signup: http://www.carriefancettpagels.com/contact/

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Kellie VanHorn, an award-winning author of inspirational romance and romantic suspense. She has college degrees in biology and nautical archaeology, but she’s always found her sense of adventure most satisfied by a great story. When not writing, Kellie can be found homeschooling her four children, camping, baking and gardening. She lives with her family in west Michigan.

“My first book, Fatal Flashback, was inspired by the setting,” Kellie says. “For example, my husband and I were living in Texas, and we went on a camping trip out to Big Bend National Park and I fell in love with the setting. I had never written anything book-length before and I thought this would be an amazing place for a romance between a park ranger and somebody else, and there’s going to be action and adventure.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Buried Evidence.

Connect w/Kellie
Website: https://www.kellievanhorn.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorkellievanhorn
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/kelliemparker

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m talking with Kimberly Woodhouse, the best-selling and award-winning author of more than twenty-five books who loves the joy of story. A lover of history and research, she often gets sucked into the past and then her husband has to lure her out with chocolate. She’s spoken to more than 2 million people at more than 2,500 venues and has taught the craft of writing around the country. Married to the love of her life for thirty-plus years, she makes her home in the Poconos.

“It’s definitely a discipline to write,” Kimberly says. “I do teach a lot about writing … and people ask [how do I write when I get writer’s block] all the time. My answer is writer’s block is not an option. You have these big dreams [about the creative process], … but writing is hard work. It is a discipline—you have to make yourself sit down and write. You can’t wait for the muse to hit and you write something brilliant.

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Bridge of Gold.

Connect w/Kimberly
Website: www.kimberleywoodhouse.com

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Natalie Walters, the author of Carol Award finalist Living Lies, as well as Deadly Deceit and Silent Shadows. A military wife, she currently resides in Hawaii with her soldier husband and is a proud mom of three adult kiddos. She has been published in Proverbs 31 magazine and has blogged for Guideposts online. She loves connecting on social media, sharing her love of books, cooking, and traveling. Natalie comes from a long line of military and law enforcement veterans and is passionate about supporting them through volunteer work, races, and writing stories that affirm no one is defined by their past.

“Our lives revolved around electronic devices, Zoom and FaceTime, during the pandemic in 2020, but I think that was one of the pluses to staying connected with people,” Natalie says. “Being able to remain on social media and be able to communicate through FaceTime and video chats to keep people updated. … That was one of the best ways for me as an author to remain connected with readers.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Lights Out.

Connect w/Natalie
Website: www.nataliewalterswriter.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100041917969557
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nataliewalters_writer/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/natwalterswrite

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Traci Hunter Abramson, who was born in Arizona, where she lived until moving to Venezuela for a study-abroad program. After graduating from Brigham Young University, she worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, eventually resigning in order to raise her family. She credits the CIA with giving her a wealth of ideas as well as the skills needed to survive her children’s teenage years. She loves to travel and enjoys coaching her local high school swim team. She has written more than 30 best-selling novels and is a seven-time Whitney Award winner, including 2017 and 2019 Best Novel of the Year.

“I tend to write a lot of Navy SEALs, CIA type books, so basing them in DC, Virginia Beach, Virginia is often a favorite for me, but the characters being in the military or CIA are from everywhere,” Traci said. “So living in Virginia for so many years but being from the West is great. For example, if you’re talking about Virginia, one of the most common freeways is I-95, but if you’re in Utah, it’s the 15, with the in front of the number. Little things like that you wouldn’t know unless you’ve lived in different places.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Redemption.

Connect w/Traci
Website: https://www.traciabramson.com

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting with Sally Jo Pitts, who writes what she likes to read—faith-based stories of romance and mystery with an unusual twist. She brings a career as a private investigator, high school guidance counselor and teacher of family and consumer sciences to the fiction page. Her real-world experiences fuel her passion to share how faith can bring hope in the face of conflicts that she puts her characters through. Residing in north Florida with her spunky schnauzer, Gibbs, Sally Jo enjoys hot mochas, old movies, and writing scenes from scribbled notes that clutter her house.

“What I wanted to do as a career as a child was archeology,” Sally Jo says. “Writing also has got that concept of digging, you have to dig into your subject and your topic and your characters and what’s going happen. Archeology fascinated me, finding the tombs and treasures… and writing fits that whole concept of discovery because as a writer I do that daily.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Autumn Vindication.

Connect w/Sally Jo
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sallyjopitts
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SallyJoPitts
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18207570.Sally_Jo_Pitts
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/sally-jo-pitts?list=author_books

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting with Melanie Jeschke, the author of The Oxford Chronicles, a historical romance series set in the Oxford of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, (Inklings, Intentions, Expectations, Evasions) and Jillian Dare a retelling of Jane Eyre. An honors’ graduate of UVA with a MA in English Literature from GMU, she is currently an adjunct professor of English. Melanie has studied at Oxford University and has traveled extensively in the United Kingdom, where she sets her stories. Melanie lives in beautiful Belmont Bay with her husband, Bill Jeschke, senior pastor of The King’s Chapel, and has nine children and a plethora of grandchildren.

“I was inspired by author Deborah White Smith, who did some updated versions or modern-day tellings of some Jane Austen books,” Melanie says. “I loved her books and I love Jane Austen, and thought, ‘I could do this’ with one of my favorite classics, Jane Eyre. … I love the whole gothic suspense thing that goes on in Jane Eyre and that could easily be reset to today.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Jillian Dare.

Connect w/Melanie
Website: www.melaniejeschke.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Melanie-Jeschke/40516263050

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Mindy Steele. Raised in Kentucky timber country, Mindy has been writing since she could hold a crayon against the wall. Inspired by her rural surroundings, her books are peppered with humor, and sprinkled with grace, charming all the senses to make you laugh, cry, hold your breath, and root for the happy ever after ending. Mother of four, Mindy enjoys coffee indulgences, week end road trips, and researching her next book. Represented by Julie Gwinn of the Seymour Agency, she has four novels releasing in 2021: To Catch A Hummingbird from Vinspire, An Amish Flower Farm with Hallmark Publishing, Christmas Grace with Entangled, and His Amish Wife’s Hidden Past with Harlequin’s Love Inspired imprint.

“I don’t write in crayon anymore but I do have a closet door with a map going up on the wall that some artist family members are building a mural of Miller’s Creek, which is where most of my books’ settings are just so I can keep track of the roads and who lives in what house,” Mindy says. “So they’re allowed to draw on the walls of my office for that.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from His Amish Wife’s Hidden Past.

Connect w/Mindy
Website: https://mindysteeleauthor.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mindy.h.steele
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/msteelem07/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14181261.Mindy_Steele
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mindysteele7

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting with Andrew Huff, author of the action-packed Shepherd Suspense Series from Kregel Publications. The first book in the series, A Cross to Kill, was a finalist in the Mystery/Thriller categories of both the 2020 Foreword INDIE awards as well as the 2020 ACFW Carol Awards. Huff is an accomplished novelist as well as screenwriter and has worked in the church media and entertainment industry after spending 10 years as a leader in local church ministry. He currently calls North Texas home where he and his beautiful wife, Jae, raise their two boys and rescue dog.

“As a younger man, I was really interested in filmmaking,” Andy says. “When I’m writing a scene, I may [visualize it as a movie]. In my Shepherd suspense series, there are scenes in each of the books that play out as if I were watching a movie in advance of me writing it. … I take that and start diving into how do I turn this into a written scene.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Right Cross.

Connect w/Andrew
Website: https://www.andrewhuffbooks.com 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/AndyHuff 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/huffwrites 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewjohnhuff
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andyhuff/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewjohnhuff/

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m talking with Kathy Harris, an author by way of a “divine detour” into the Nashville music business, where she has worked for 30 years as a marketing director. She sold her first Christian nonfiction stories in 2007. Her debut novel, The Road to Mercy, released in 2012 from Abingdon Press. Her second book, Deadly Commitment, the first in The Deadly Secrets series, released in print and audio in 2019 from Iron Stream Media. A large print library edition followed in 2020 from Center Point Large Print. The second book in The Deadly Secrets series, Deadly Connection, releases this fall.

“When I started blogging over 10 years ago, I decided that divine detour sums up my writing and life in general,” Kathy says. “Sometimes God takes us on a crooked path to the right thing. … We can’t always assume how God plans to get us to our calling and [divine detour] kind of sums that up for all of us.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Deadly Commitment.

Connect w/Kathy
Website: https://kathyharrisbooks.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KathyHarrisAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/divinedetour
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathyharris_author/

“It seems in these days, many people feel so hopeless and so helpless,” Liz says. “That’s why I do what I do very intentionally to show that even in the most terrifying circumstances, … we’re never truly alone in that. God has promised that he’s going to walk through the fire with us. So no matter what happens, he’s always going to be there. Then he promises that he works everything out to our good. There’s that hope that I do bring to the stories and that I hope the readers will pick up on and we’ll be uplifted by it. Even a romantic suspense can be an uplifting book when it’s written from a Christian perspective.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Liz’s The Silver Shadow.

Connect w/Liz
Website: www.liztolsma.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liz.tolsma.9
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LizTolsma
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorliztolsma/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwPYY6AW56Yw8l9D2OYDG6Q?view_as=subscriber
Podcast: https://christianhistoricalfiction.buzzsprout.com/

“Sometimes our writing kind of tells us what to write,” says Jerusha Agen. “Writing suspense fits tendencies of my personality because I do tend to be a fearful person. … I have a hyperactive imagination. So I’m really always imagining worst-case scenarios and danger. In a way, I think writing romantic suspense gives me a healthy channel for the tendencies instead of just freaking myself out in my daily life. I can actually put it in a book, and have more control over it and have a positive lesson come out of it as well.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Jerusha’s Rising Danger.

Connect w/Jerusha
Website: www.JerushaAgen.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jerushaagen/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JerushaAgenAuthor/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7281400.Jerusha_Agen
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jerusha-agen-fd78bc82-831e-41c0-81d6-d02a6ddade0e

“You’re always sort of riding that fine line of believable, but pushing the edge of it,” Jennifer says. “You want to put people in really strange and difficult situations, and you want the stakes to escalate. You want things to get more challenging. … People have to get lost in the story world and feel like it can happen. … One of the questions we ask ourselves as writers is what’s the worst thing that could happen right now?”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Jennifer’s Off the Map.

Connect w/Jennifer
Website: www.JLCrosswhite.com
Facebook: facebook.com/authorjennifercrosswhite
Twitter: twitter.com/jenlcross
Instagram: instagram.com/jencrosswhite
Pinterest: pinterest.com/jtiszai
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16063445.Jennifer_Crosswhite
Amazon author: https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B01MG7RZQ9
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jl-crosswhite

“I have written other genres, but romantic suspense is the one that I keep going back to,” Melissa says. “I think it really comes down to my two favorite things in writing—intrigue/mystery and any kind of really super-intense emotions. And so this is a genre that really covers all of that and marries it beautifully.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Melissa’s Never Miss.

Connect w/Melissa
Website: MelissaKoslin.com

“The Bible has everything in it because we’re all human beings,” Michele says. “There’s stories about human beings and all of the trials and tribulations we go through. There is a lot of suspense in there. There is a lot of heartache and challenges and triumphs. The Bible is a conglomeration of stories about us and all that we face. … I’ll never run out of material.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Michele’s The Peace Maker.

Connect w/Michele
Website: https://michelechynoweth.com/

“I think that there’s a spiritual aspect to nature because I see God’s creativity,” Lori says. “Nature is one of the things that really speaks to my heart. I love to observe trees, plants, the sunrise or sunset, to feel the sunshine, the wind. … We spend 90% of our lives indoors, and that’s not how we were recreated. … There’s something intentional about seeking those moments to be just outside and experiencing the world. All the senses come alive when you go outside into the natural world.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Lori’s A Firm Place to Stand.

Connect w/Lori
Website: https://www.lorialtebaumer.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lori.altebaumer
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lori_altebaumer/
Amazon Author Central: https://amazon.com/author/lorialtebaumer
Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lori-altebaumer
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/lori_altebaumer

“I’ve got so many demands currently that’s it’s hard to find time to write,” James says. “What I finally realized was that my wife is so much better at organization and schedules than I am that I needed to give her control over my schedule. Before I was trying to be the soldier and the general at the same time. I’ve had the most productive last couple of months in my entire writing career by just letting go of control and letting her take over.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from James’s The Paris Betrayal.

Connect w/James
Website: https://jamesrhannibal.com/

“I find inspiration everywhere I can,” Terri says. “When I’m watching TV, I think, ‘Oh, that’s kind of an interesting thing that they did, but what if I did this instead?’ I’m always looking at newsfeeds and headlines, then taking the idea of whatever that headline is and flipping it around into something feasible, that could happen in real life. But it is fiction and we get to have some license.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Terri’s Alaskan Rescue.

Connect w/Terri
Website: http://www.terrireed.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrireedauthorpage/
Goodreads: https://wwwgoodreads.com/author/show/178940.Terri_Reed
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/terri-reed
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/terrireedauthor/
Newsletter: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/o4x4h1
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Terri-Reed/e/B001H9VYCQ%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share

“When you write romantic suspense, there are three story threads that you’ve got to weave together,” Lisa says. “There’s the romantic tension between your characters in which they’ve got to overcome certain obstacles that threaten their relationship. Then you’ve also got the thread of suspense where the characters are trying to either find a killer or escape, a killer or someone will die. And because I write from a Christian worldview, there’s also the spiritual thread that is running through my novels, where the characters are coming to grips with God’s invitation for a relationship. I’m weaving together these three story tension threads between the spiritual and the romantic and the suspense and it’s kind of a little dance to get them all, to come out together in the end.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Lisa’s The Sound of Falling Leaves.

Connect w/Lisa
Website: http://www.lisacarterauthor.com/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/lisa-carter
Newsletter: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/g0y9n5
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Lisa-Carter/e/B00BF1FGPC?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_4&qid=1617370912&sr=8-4

 

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m talking to Elizabeth Goddard, who has sold more than a million books and is the award-winning author of more than 50 novels and counting, including the romantic mystery The Camera Never Lies—a 2011 Carol Award winner. She is a Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery and Suspense finalist for her Mountain Cove series—Buried, Backfire, and Deception—and a Carol Award finalist for Submerged. When she’s not writing, she loves spending time with her family, traveling to find inspiration for her next book, and serving with her husband in ministry.

“I actually worked in corporate America in my twenties, and I traveled all over the country,” Elizabeth, adding that she quit to stay home with her first child. “During that time, I decided that I wanted to focus on my dream of writing. … Now it’s my full-time job, where I have word counts and marketing/promotion I have to hit every day.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Elizabeth’s Present Danger.

Connect w/Elizabeth
Website: www.ElizabethGoddard.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1295402.Elizabeth_Goddard
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bethgoddard
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethGoddardAuthor
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/elizabeth-goddard
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethgoddardauthor/

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” USA Today bestselling author Mary Alford shares her love of writing. In her books, she gives her readers the unexpected, whether it be in a rugged mountain setting or a peaceful Amish community. Her titles have appeared on the USA Today Bestselling List, Publisher’s Weekly Bestselling List, and have been finalists in the Daphne Du Maurier award of excellence, The Beverly, The Maggie, and The Selah Awards. Mary lives in Texas with her husband, two very spoiled cats, and a sweet rescue dog named Cody.

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve always liked to read,” Mary said. “I started reading Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. I loved the mystery and suspense of those. From there, I graduated to Victoria Holt, Phyliss Whitney, Mary Stuart. I was a preteen when I first decided to try my hand at writing what I loved to read. It looked so easy! I wrote my first book, which was terrible and full of cliches and sappy romance. Those stories lit a fire in me. Many years fell in-between before I started writing again.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Mary’s Shielding the Amish Witness.

Connect w/Mary
Website: www.maryalford.net
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MaryAlfordAuthor/
Twitter: twitter.com/maryalford13
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/maryjalfordauth/_created/
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/7235798
Bookbub: www.bookbub.com/authors/mary-alford

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting with Joanna White, a Christian author and fangirl. Hunter and Shifter are the first two books in the Valiant Series, published by Ambassador International. In December 2019, one of her short stories was featured in Once Upon A Yuletide, a Christmas fairy tale anthology by Divination Publishing. Dark Magi, book one of the Republic Chronicles, came out in November 2019. Glimpses of Time and Magic, a historical fantasy anthology, also featured one of her stories. The Crystal Heist is her most recent release.

She graduated from Full Sail University with a BFA in creative writing for entertainment. Ever since she was 10, she’s been writing stories and has a deep passion for writing and creating stories, worlds, characters, and plots that readers can immerse themselves in. In 2020, she reached her personal goal of writing a million words in a year. Most of all, Joanna loves God, her family, staying at home, and being a total nerd.

“I’m a full-time author and I write all the time,” Joanna said. “My goal for 2020 was to write a million words just with my novels that hit at least 50,000 words. I had a lot of books or series that I wanted to start or complete or work on. … January 1, 2020, I started the challenge, and by July 23, I had completed the challenge. I’ve written 15 books and since then, I’ve written two more.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Volcano.

Connect w/Joanna
Website: authorjoannawhite.com
Facebook: facebook.com/groups/jwwarriors

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m talking with Debby Giusti, USA TODAY and Publishers Weekly Bestselling Author. She’s a medical technologist who loves working with test tubes and petri dishes almost as much as she loves to write. Growing up as an Army Brat, Debby met and married her husband—then a captain in the Army—at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Together they traveled the world, raised three wonderful Army brats of their own and eventually settled in Peachtree City, Georgia, where Debby spins tales of suspense that touch the heart and soul.

Debby has more than a million books in print, and her stories have won numerous awards, including two Daphne du Maurier Awards for Inspirational Suspense, the National Readers’ Choice Award, the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award, Golden Quill, the Beacon, the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and the Write Touch. Hidden Amish Secrets is her 27th Love Inspired Suspense novel.

In addition to full-length fiction, Debby has written magazine articles for Southern Lady, Woman’s World, Our Sunday Visitor, Army and Family, and served for more than 12 years on the editorial advisory board of ADVANCE for Administrators of the Laboratory.

“I don’t know if I could write a book if I couldn’t kill somebody,” Debby said. “There’s a lot of elements to a suspense story that need to be woven together. I’m a plotter, so beforehand, I want to get a fairly good idea of how the story’s going to progress. We have our red herrings, and there’s a lot of foreshadowing that has to go in there. And of course our villain has to be a somewhat complex person. He has to have goals and motivations and conflict, and he has to change through the story as well.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Debby’s Hidden Amish Secrets.

Connect w/Debby
Website: www.debbygiusti.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/debby.giusti.9
Twitter: twitter.com/DebbyGiusti

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Lynn H. Blackburn, author of Beneath the Surface, In Too Deep, One Final Breath, Hidden Legacy and Covert Justice. Winner of the 2016 Selah Award for Mystery and Suspense, and the 2016 Carol Award for Short Novel, Lynn believes in the power of stories, especially those that remind us that true love exists, a gift from the Truest Love. She’s passionate about CrossFit, coffee, and chocolate (don’t make her choose) and experimenting with recipes that feed both body and soul. She lives in Simpsonville, S.C., with her true love, Brian, and their three children.

“A few years ago, we turned an attic storage area off of our bonus room into an office for me,” Lynn said. “Half of the ceiling is angled to the floor because it’s the roofline, but it’s a room of my own for writing. My kids are used to me saying, ‘This is the part where you pretend Mommy has left the house.’”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Lynn’s Unknown Threat.

Connect w/Lynn
Website: https://lynnhblackburn.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LynnHBlackburn/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LynnHBlackburn/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lynnhblackburn/_saved/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynnhblackburn/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10631390.Lynn_Huggins_Blackburn

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting with Dana Mentink, a national and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author. She’s written more than 40 mystery and suspense novels for Love Inspired Suspense, Harvest House, Harlequin Heartwarming and Sourcebooks. She is honored to have received two ACFW Carol Awards, a Holt Medallion Award, and a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award. Dana hosts monthly contests and giveaways via her Dana Mentink’s Facebook Reader Group.

“I think time is like a closet,” Dana said. “If you have a small closet, you fill it up. If you suddenly gotten yourself a big closet, you fill it up. No matter the how much space or time you have, you’re going to fill it up.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Dana’s Framed in Death Valley.

Connect w/Dana
Website: www.danamentink.com
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Dana-Mentink/e/B001JRXHXK/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_ebooks_1
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authordanamentink/

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Lenora Worth, who writes romance and romantic suspense for Harlequin’s Love Inspired and sweet romance for Tule Publishing. She’s a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Honor Rolls and her books have finaled in the ACFW Carol Awards. She also received the Romantic Times Pioneer Award for Inspirational Fiction. Lenora is a NY Times, USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestselling writer and a 2019 RWA RITA® Finalist. With 80-plus books published and more than 3 million books in print, she enjoys adventures with her retired husband and loves reading, baking and shopping … especially shoe shopping.

“I don’t know how I’ve written 80 books,” Lenora said. “I’ve always wanted to write from a young age, and when I finally had the opportunity, it took a few years. I really enjoy writing and I have a vivid imagination. When I look back, I think how I did I do that. I’ve written novels, novellas, short stories, poetry, worked for newspapers, worked for magazines—and it was all coming from this need to put words on the page.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Lenora’s Amish Country Secret.

Connect w/Lenora
Website: www.lenoraworth.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lenora.worth
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LenoraWorth

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m talking about writing with Sara Blackard, a Christian romance novelist who writes stories that thrill the imagination and strum heartstrings. She’s been a writer since she was able to hold a pencil. When she’s not crafting wild adventures and sweet romances, she’s homeschooling her five children, keeping their off-grid house running, or enjoying the Alaskan lifestyle she and her husband love.

“It was kind of difficult finding a balance to write at first,” Sara said. “I primarily get up early—and it’s hopefully before anyone else is up—between five and five-thirty, and then try to get as much writing as I can before everyone else is getting up. Whatever writing doesn’t get done, I try to fit it in between math, etc.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Sara’s Discovering Rafe.

Connect w/Sara
Website: www.sarablackard.com
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/sara-blackard
Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19758019.Sara_Blackard
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sara.blackard.author
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sara.blackard/

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m talking with author Gina Holder, who dreamed of being a writer from her early teen years. She lives in Colorado with her husband and daughter. When she’s not homeschooling her daughter or working on her next novel, she enjoys reading, watching movies, cooking, singing, and playing the piano and organ. Her indie-published debut novel released in 2017.

“When watching movies, I use them to draw inspiration as far as character ideas, flaws for the characters, plot engines, and how other writers have put together the steps to create the plots,” Gina said. “When I relax my mind that way, I’m also able to think of things for my own books and ideas come to mind.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Gina’s Forgiven Again.

Connect w/Gina
Blog: http://storiesbygina.wordpress.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/storiesbygina
Instagram: http://instagram.com/storiesbygina
Twitter: http://twitter.com/storiesbygina
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Gina-Holder/e/B074HC9SHX
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/gina-holder
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17074375.Gina_Holder

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting with Deena Alexander, who grew up in a small town on the south shore of eastern Long Island, where she met and married her high school sweetheart. She recently relocated to Florida with her husband, three kids, son-in-law, and four dogs. Now she enjoys long walks in nature all year long, despite the occasional alligator or snake she sometimes encounters. Deena’s love for writing developed when her youngest son was born and didn’t sleep through the night, and she now works full time as a writer and a freelance editor.

“For me, I think there are a few things hard about writing romantic suspense,” Deena said. “One is keeping up that level of suspense through the whole story. Second, balancing that with the romance. Since I write inspirational, it’s also balancing the faith element with the suspense and romance—all while not letting the story get boring.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Deena’s Crime Scene Connection.

Connect w/Deena
Website: http://deenaalexander.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DeenaAlexanderAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeenaAlexanderA
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20382104.Deena_Alexander
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/deena-alexander

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Cara Putman, the author of more than 25 legal thrillers, historical romances, and romantic suspense novels. She has won or been a finalist for honors including the ACFW Book of the Year and the Christian Retailing’s BEST Award. Cara graduated high school at 16, college at 20, completed her law degree at 27, and recently received her MBA. She is a practicing attorney, teaches undergraduate and graduate law courses at a Big Ten business school, and is a homeschooling mom of four. She lives with her husband and children in Indiana.

“One of my secrets is that when I decided to start writing, I gave up TV,” Cara said. “I figured out what was that thing in my life that I could cut out and make space for writing.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Cara’s Lethal Intent.

Connect w/Cara
Website: CaraPutman.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cara.putman
Twitter: @Cara_Putman

“When I decided to write a book, it was natural for me to segue into romantic suspense,” Lynette said. “I was a suspense fan and a romance fan, so combining the two was fun.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Active Defense.

Connect w/Lynette
Website: www.lynetteeason.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/lynette.eason
Twitter: @lynetteeason

As an award-winning author of professional articles and poems, Wendy Wilson Spooner turned to novel writing to share what she knows with a greater audience. When she is not writing or researching, she reads, hikes, paints, travels, binges on Bollywood movies, and spends time with her greatest loves—her family. Her debut novel, Once Upon an Irish Summer, is the first in a trilogy and has been an Amazon bestseller.

“If somebody tells me the end of a book or a movie, it doesn’t ruin it for me,” Wendy said. “I still want to go back and read or watch it because I want to know how that ending came to pass.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Once Upon an Irish Summer.

Connect w/Wendy
Website: https://wendywilsonspooner.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorWendyWilsonSpooner/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Wendy_W_Spooner
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wendyspooner/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-wilson-spooner-07741249/

“I’ve never seen a story where a court reporter was the main character,” Kelly said. “It fit so well into the crime genre because they’re responsible for the evidence in trials. A lot of people think they’re just transcribers, but there’s a tremendous amount of work that goes into recording the trial.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Closer Than She Knows.

Connect w/Kelly
Website: http://www.kellyirvin.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Kelly.Irvin.Author
Twitter: @Kelly_S_Irvin
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/irvin0739/
Instagram: Kelly_Irvin

“My whole writing journey is this God-given thing,” Jodie said. “I was in contemporary women’s fiction, when my agent asked if I thought about writing military suspense. I walked to the coat closet, and I thought, ‘What if somebody was in my closet and it’s the good guy?’ Before I knew it, I had half a military suspense done in my head.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Fatal Identity.

Connect w/Jodie
Website: www.jodiebailey.com.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/writerjodiebailey
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorjodiebailey/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jodie-bailey

With the distinction of finaling in ACFW’s 2017 First Impressions contest under romantic suspense and placing third for RWA’s 2019 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense, Stephanie writes stories laced with suspense and heart. Her debut novel, Treacherous Mountain Investigation, is on sale now.

Living in Cincinnati with her police lieutenant husband, four kids, two dogs, and two sassy parakeets, Stephanie owns a professional writing business and spends her free time learning and blogging about Jesus. Stephanie is represented by Cynthia Ruchti of Books & Such Literary Management.

“It is really cool for me that my husband is a police lieutenant,” Sherri said. “It makes it a lot less awkward for me because I don’t have to hunt down someone to get answers to my questions. But sometimes, it can be hard to pull the answers from him because it’s his everyday life and he doesn’t think about the details that I need for my writing.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Treacherous Mountain Investigation.

Connect w/Stephanie
Website: www.stephaniemgammon.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/@stephmgammon
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorStephanieMGammon/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephaniemgammon/

“The hardest part for me in writing romantic suspense is coming up with good plots,” Robin said. “I really write small town romantic suspense, and I like my characters to all stay in the same town and know each other. But how many different ways can you put danger in a small town?”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from “A Glimmer in the Darkness” from Dangerous Deceptions.

Connect w/Robin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RobinPatchen/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/robin-patchen
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5187882.Robin_Patchen
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Robin-Patchen/e/B00A289790/

It has always been her dream to segue into fiction and Being Ethel (In a world that loves Lucy) is the first in a series based on Mackinac Island—a tiny island in the Straits of Mackinac that connect the Upper and Lower Peninsula of Michigan. A visitor there along with her husband for over thirty years, she loves to tell people about this unique place with no cars and plenty of fudge!

A mom, a mother-in-love, and a “Gee Gee” (G as in good), Michèle resides with her husband in the shadow of Lambeau Field, where life around football abounds. She cherishes her faith and family above all and is delighted to take you on this trip to Mackinac Island, a place that has brought her so much respite and joy.

“Mackinaw Island, Michigan, is one of my favorite places on earth,” Michele said. “I live about five hours away, so I’ve been going there about 35 years, so I feel like I really know the island.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Being Ethel in a world that loves Lucy.

Connect w/ Michèle
Website: LakeGirlPublishing.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/LakeGirlPublishing
Twitter: @MoDawnWriter
Instagram: Instagram.com/lakegirlpublishing

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting Laurie Wood, a military wife who’s lived across Canada and visited six of its 10 provinces. She and her husband have raised two wonderful children with Down Syndrome to adulthood, and their son and daughter are a wonderful blessing to their lives. Over the years, Laurie’s books have finaled in prestigious contests such as the Daphne du Maurier (twice), the TARA, the Jasmine and the Genesis. Her family lives in central Canada with a menagerie of rescue dogs and cats. If the house were bigger, no doubt they’d have more.

“I love research. For all three of my books, I’ve done interviews by phone, I’ve interviewed people by email, I’ve interviewed in person,” Laurie said. “I was a police officer back in the 1980s before I got married, so I don’t have any problem making those contacts with police because things have obviously changed. The investigative techniques haven’t changed but the technology has changed.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Northern Deception.

Connect w/Laurie
Website: https://www.lauriewoodauthor.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauriewoodreadersgroup
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/LaurieJeanWood

“In my romantic suspense, I don’t like to kill people,” Susan said. “My books are more adventure-oriented, so I don’t have to have a villain come in and do terrible things to my characters. But I do have people die, so I have to research things like how someone would die if they fell.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from The Price of Valor.

Connect w/Susan
Website: www.susanmaywarren.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SusanMayWarrenFiction
Twitter: @susanmaywarren

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” I’m chatting Irene Hannon, the bestselling and award-winning author of more than 50 contemporary romance and romantic suspense novels, including Dangerous Illusions, Hidden Peril, and Dark Ambitions, as well as the Men of Valor, Heroes of Quantico, Guardians of Justice, and Private Justice series. In addition to her many other honors, she is a three-time winner of the prestigious RITA Award from Romance Writers of America. She is also a member of RWA’s elite Hall of Fame and has received a Career Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews for her entire body of work. Each of her suspense novels have been ECPA bestsellers, and her books often appear on the Publishers Weekly bestseller list.

“The contemporary romance that I write have a lot of drama in them, but it’s more of an interpersonal variety and those very rarely have any cliffhanger, life-and-death moments. I get to do a pretty deep dive in the psychology of the characters and focus on the relationship side of things,” Irene said. “When I move into romantic suspense, I’m dealing with more usually shorter time frame and a lot more tension and danger and some characters are pretty scary. … Those books tend to be more intense and research heavy.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Point of Danger.

Connect w/Irene
Website: www.irenehannon.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Irene-Hannon-426433004084567/

“In romantic suspense, there’s always something happening,” Lynn said. “One of the challenges of writing romantic suspense is that you have many threads that you’re pulling at the same time—the romance, the mystery and the faith element—that you have to interweave all together.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Following the Evidence.

Connect w/Lynn
Website: www.lynnshannon.com

“It’s easy and it’s not easy to write,” Jessica said. “If you’re a seat-of-the-pants writer—if you just make it up as you go, and that’s how I was originally—having a manuscript is fantastic because once it’s done, you write your proposal and send it in. But when you start selling on proposal, they want a full synopsis, which can be about seven to 10 pages.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Recovered Secrets.

Connect w/Jessica
Website: https://www.jessicarpatch.com
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jessica-r-patch
Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Jessica-R.-Patch/e/B00U0LH62Y%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicarpatch/?hl=en

“One thing I love about writing inspirational romantic suspense is that I love romantic suspense,” Virginia said. “I’ve been a fan of romantic suspense forever.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Texas Twin Abduction.

Connect w/Virginia
Email Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/dtFeVP
Website:  www.virginiavaughanonline.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ginvaughanbooks
Twitter: www.twitter.com/gin_vaughan
Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/author/virginiavaughan
Bookbub Author Page: www.bookbub.com/profile/virginia-vaughan
Instagram: www.instagram.com/virginiavaughanauthor

“I’ve always looked at writing as a kind of therapy,” Lisa said. “But I also learned that you can’t wait to write until you feel creative. I think that’s been my biggest struggle [during the pandemic], if I wait to feel creative, I’m really just not feeling creative. … I’ve had to learn I have to sit down and write.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Port of Origin.

Connect w/Lisa
Website: www.lisaharriswrites.com
Blog: myblogintheheartofafrica.blogspot.com
Facebook Author: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLisaHarris
Twitter; https://twitter.com/heartofafrica
Pinterest: https://za.pinterest.com/lharriswrites/

“I like to take what’s happening in and around me in our country and use those as ways to make people aware of them,” Margaret said. “In my books, the criminals always get caught, so I see them as a way to help us handle these issues.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Missing.

Connect w/Margaret
Website: www.margaretdaley.com.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/margaretdaleybooks
Twitter: twitter.com/margaretdaley
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/238174.Margaret_Daley
BookBub: www.bookbub.com/authors/margaret-daley

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Plain Refuge.

“When I first started, I started writing regular romantic suspense,” Dana said. “In my third book, I started to veer off into Amish adjacent, and what that is some of your characters can be Amish or not, but it’s usually set in Amish settings or there’s some connection with Amish side characters. I’ve had heroes and heroines who were Amish, but I’ve also had cops and paramedics. It doesn’t have to be strictly Amish, but there’s an Amish element.”

Connect w/Dana
Website:  www.danarlynn.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriterDanaLynn
Twitter: twitter.com/DanaRLynn
Instagram: www.instagram.com/danarlynn

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Border Breach.

“Every since I was a little girl, I loved mysteries—whether it was a Nancy Drew book, a game of Clue or Charlie’s Angels TV show,” Darlene said. “This is what started my love of trying to figure out the mystery, and this is why I love writing romantic suspense.”

Connect w/Darlene
Website: www.darlenelturner.com
Facebook: https://bit.ly/2Woy8dK
Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Qso27O
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2UhbelT
BookBub: https://bit.ly/2QrdkhP
Pinterest: https://bit.ly/2x2Batz
Instagram: darlenel.turner

On this episode of “The Romantic Side of Suspense,” my guest is Dani Pettrey. Praised by New York Times bestselling author Dee Henderson as “a name to look for in romantic suspense,” Dani has sold more than half a million copies of her novels to readers eagerly awaiting the next release. Dani combines the page-turning adrenaline of a thriller with the chemistry and happy-ever-after of a romance. Her novels stand out for their “wicked pace, snappy dialogue, and likable characters” (Publishers Weekly), “gripping storyline[s]” (RT Book Reviews), and “sizzling undercurrent of romance” (USA Today).

Her Alaskan Courage series and Chesapeake Valor series have received praise from readers and critics alike and spent multiple months topping the CBA bestseller lists. Dani has also been honored with multiple awards, including the Daphne du Maurier Award, two HOLT Medallions, two National Readers’ Choice Awards, the Gail Wilson Award of Excellence, and Christian Retailing’s Best Award.

Dani considers herself blessed to be able to write the kind of stories she loves—full of plot twists, peril, love, and a longing for hope and redemption. Her greatest joy as an author is sharing the stories God lays on her heart. She researches murder and mayhem from her home in Maryland, where she lives with her husband. Their two daughters, a son-in-law, and two adorable grandsons also reside in Maryland.

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from The Crushing Depths.

“For motivation for writing in general, the biggest thing is writing first thing in the morning,” Dani said. “If I do that, it’s really helpful because nothing else is weighing on my mind. … the afternoons, I do the other stuff like check email, marketing, etc. My advice is to find the most productive writing time of day is for you.”

Connect w/Dani
Website: www.danipettrey.com
Instagram: @authordanipettrey
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DaniPettrey
Twitter: www.twitter.com/DaniPettrey

David L. Winters

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Stock Car Inferno.

“I’ve always loved suspense. My babysitter when I was probably five years old started me out on Edgar Allen Poe,” David said. “I’ve always thought it really a talent to tell a story that not only keeps the reader engaged but eager to find out what’s happening next.”

Connect w/David
Website: https://www.sabbaticalofthemind.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authordavidlwinters

A clerical career, spanning 50 years, placed her in positions from file clerk to office manager, mostly in clinical settings. Being retired from that phase in her life, she now resides in Houston. Her stories reflect things she’s learned, personal experiences and places where she’s been. All other information, professions or occupations, situations or actions in her writing comes thorough research. She calls upon professionals in those fields to bring her characters and stories to life. Many of her contacts are through the American Christian Fiction Writers organization, of which she is a member. She also obtains research information from her group forum, but never hesitates to call upon local law enforcement, the military, FBI, or other organizations when needed to make her characters and situations realistic. Sharon writes novels and novellas in the Christian romantic suspense genre and short stories in a variety of genres.

“I connect with my readers mostly on social media,” Sharon said. “I’m on Facebook a lot on a group forum and author and book page, and also on Twitter to connect with readers there too.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from There Abideth Hope.

Connect w/Sharon
Website: www.authorsharonkconnell.com
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/sharonkconnell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/averypresenthelpbook1
https://www.facebook.com/ChristianRomanceSuspense/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ChristianWritersAndReadersGroupForum/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SharonKConnell
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/SharonKConnell
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharonkconnell
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rosecastle1/
AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/search-page.php?q=Sharon+K+Connell

Tanya Stowe

“I like to explore the unusual,” Tanya said. “And that tends to come out in my books. … We’ve visited some fascinating places, and … I’ve incorporated that into my books.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Killer Harvest.

Connect w/Tanya
Website: https://www.tanyastowe.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TanyaStoweReadersPage?ref=h
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TanyaStowe1
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tanya.stowe/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Tanya-Stowe/e/B003UDYONS
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/tanya-stowe
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4595413.Tanya_Stowe

“When I started out, I had an outline for writing my books,” Patricia said. “But about three books ago, I couldn’t figure out the outline and had to start writing to figure the book out. I find out as much about my character as I can before I start writing.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Standoff.

Connect w/Patricia
Website: www.patriciabradleyauthor.com
Blog: www.patriciabradleyauthor.com/blog
Twitter: @ptbradley1
Facebook: www.facebook.com/patriciabradleyauthor
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ptbradley/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/patricia-bradley

“The more I write, the more I get to know my characters,” Kimberly said. “As I get to know my characters more, I often will go back and write more things into my story. I also make notes in the margins … to make sure I put everything in.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from The Sleuth’s Conundrum.

“For me, I’m very much a character-drive plotter,” Sherri said. “If I know my character’s conflict at the beginning, that helps keep the romantic and personal plots in place. Because if I’m ever tempted to stray, I go back to what is their false belief.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Stolen Secrets.

Connect w/Sherrie
Website: sherrishackelford.com
Twitter: @smshackelford
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SherriShackelfordAuthor

Denise Weimer writes historical and contemporary romance and romantic suspense set in her home state of Georgia. She’s authored more than 10 novels and a number of novellas. As a managing editor at Smitten Historical Romance and Heritage Beacon Fiction, Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas, she also helps others reach their publishing dreams. A wife and mother of two daughters, Denise always pauses for coffee, chocolate and old houses.

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Traces.

“My favorite thing is to name a book based on a theme, an underlying inspirational theme or character development theme in my books,” Denise said. “I also sometimes choose a name based on a big event that happens in the book.”

Connect w/Denise
Monthly Newsletter: http://bit.ly/3b6Z1aW
Website: https://deniseweimerbooks.webs.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/denise.weimer1
Twitter: https://twitter.com/denise_weimer
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/denise-weimer

“We recently downsized and relocated to a tiny house that backs up to woods and forest,” Linda said. “There’s a chair that looks out over the woods. In the summer, I sit on our deck in a chaise lounge overlooking the woods. I find it restive and rejuvenating while I’m working.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Under Ground.

Connect w/Linda
Website: http://www.LindaShentonMatchett.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LindaShentonMatchettAuthor
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/lindasmatchett
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/lindasmatchett

“I would advise someone who wanted to write a book to do it—just sit down and write and get it out,” Julie said. “Don’t worry about grammar, don’t worry about spelling or any punctuation—get the English teacher out of your head!—just get it down on paper. … Get into in person or online with a good, supportive critique group.”

Listen to the podcast for more from our interview, plus an excerpt from Leaf Me Alone.

Connect w/Julie
Website: www.juliebcosgrove.com
Facebook: juliebcosgrove@Facebook.com