Category: Author Interviews

Today, I’d like to welcome a very special guest, Theresa Jacobs, but BEWARE! She’s brought someone with her.

HI, Sarah, and hopefully many readers, thank you for allowing me to be here today. Let’s get right down to the good stuff –  a serial killer called Handsome.

See what I mean? The instant Theresa gets a foot in the door, HE is here!

I began writing horror/sci-fi, or speculative fiction as it’s called with mixed genres’ and had no intention of going away from that path. Until one scorcher of a summer’s day, our air conditioning broke, and I know you’re asking, what’s that got to do with writing? Oddly enough the repair person was just gabbing away about the shutters on my windows and happened to say “Did you know if someone has a star in their window it means they’re swingers.” Okay, so that was weird.

True, but workman do say odd things. I wonder if they save them up for ladies alone in the house. What did you say, Theresa?

“That’s a great way to have a stranger arrive at your door under the guise of ‘interested’ and kill you!”

Oh, glory!  Did the guy finish fixing the aircon?

AND, Bob’s your uncle, the new Serial Killer idea was born.

She’s not telling about the aircon… and it isn’t all she’s refusing to say. Handsome seems to be the boss around here.

However I did a lot of research and it’s not a star in the window that lets people know your inclinations, but something else – I can’t tell you what though. Grab Handsome to find out.

I guess we’d be safer with Handsome firmly under Kindle arrest. Everybody ready? 

To Amazon, Quickly!

Got him? Good. I feel much safer. Now, Theresa, I hope we’re not the only ones chasing your serial killer?

No, you’re all quite safe… I think… Marcy Gagon is on the case.

So, what did you do next? 

Once I finished writing about this new detective, Marcy Gagon, I decided to make her into a series because I enjoyed writing her. And as it turns out all my readers so far enjoy her and want more too. I do have too many ideas though and I paused book two, to write a children’s story, which is a month in and halfway finished. Plus I still plan on writing horror, as it’s my all time favorite.

I had noticed horror. In case any of our visitors don’t consider a serial killer on the loose scary enough, I checked one out.

Seventeen-year-old Josephine is used to new towns, the same bullies, and being a loner.
Until they move to Lilith Falls, where her world gets turned upside-down. Here she suspects a creature that can not possibly exist, just might.

With nothing to lose, she begins her search. Along the way, she finds a few unexpected and unusual friendships. And for the first time in her young life; falls in love. But it’s a love that is not only utterly wrong, it also cannot be returned.

Will Josephine finally be happy and find a place to call home? Or will the mysteries of Lilith Falls destroy her and leave her broken?

AMAZON

What I like most about the other genres is that I can make everything up, the towns, the scenery, how the story will play out. Whereas with crime books I am using Toronto, so streets and places need to be accurate and study the proper tools, forensics, and so on. It’s much harder, but the outcome is extremely satisfying.

I’m fighting the same battle, Theresa. Actually, my characters claim to have written all my romantic suspense novels, and I expect they’re right. Crime thrillers take a lot more work!

Now, my dear friend from Ontario, when you’re not writing or admiring Niagara Falls, how do spend your time?

I still work a forty-hour a week job and spend time with my husband, walk the dog, cook most of the time (my choice because he will cook too, I’m just a major foodie) and binge-watch shows. It’s too bad we need to sleep!

Err… yes. I think we’d all agree there aren’t enough hours in the day. Well, to quote from Mamma Mia, “do you want SOME MORE, folks? If you do, get those questions coming in. Theresa will be popping in and out all day.

And Harmony has a secret, or she had from me. I missed her first collection of Erotica, and she has written a second!

“This book contains explicit sex scenes and language hot enough to melt your eReader. For mature readers only.” Now she tells me!!!

 

So, before we start chatting, here’s a tempting list of stories.

WIGGING OUT—contemporary romance in 1000 words. Two strangers. A crowded platform. A collision. And a wig on the floor.

STORM CHASER—ménage à trois in 2000 words. A sabotaged tire. A raging storm. Passion mounts.

MOON-STRUCK—shifter romance in 3000 words. Trapped on a ship orbiting the moon, a horny astronaut falls for a hunky author who has a secret.

THE CLUB—contemporary romance in 4000 words. An invitation and a host, who is so much more than he seems, bring excitement, enticement, and a choice to make.

NUDIST CAMP—contemporary romance in 5000 words. An older woman. A younger man. A gossip discovers their secret tryst. What will happen when it all gets laid bare?

INITIATION—contemporary romance in 6000 words. A pretty daydreamer arrives for her first day at university. A brutal initiation, and a man with an unusual issue, leave her reeling. Strange, the places you find true love.

THE INCOMER—contemporary romance in 7000 words. A divorced beekeeper has spent her whole life in or around her local village. Then a city-slicker architect comes to town. When two worlds collide, a big bang is sure to follow. Can you have a frenemy with benefits?

DOWN AND DIRTY—contemporary romance in 8000 words. On the run from a sadistic ex-husband, Ellie flees to a remote mountain town and takes a job in the mines. Wary of men, she resolves to keep herself aloof, but mother nature has a way of having the last word and will, quite literally, make the earth move if she has to.

REUNION—contemporary romance in 9000 words. A school reunion looms. Not wanting to arrive sad and single, Molly talks her long-time friend Paul into going with her. While the music plays, the sparks fly.

SOUL MATES—supernatural romance in 10,000 words. A bereaved woman seeks solace in remote woodland. All too soon, she discovers that she’s not as alone as she’d expected. And her heart isn’t the only one that needs to mend.

Tempted?    Amazon Pre-Order   At least you can’t rush off and start reading before we’ve finished our chat, and Harmony will be popping in now and then all day to respond to comments and answer your questions.

Harmony, why did you wait until you reached 40 before you published your first book?

 

Ever since I can remember, I’ve enjoyed making stuff up. As soon as I learnt how to write, I put felt tip or crayon (and, later, a pen) to paper and made up stories. I loved writing and reading and wanted nothing more than to be an author when I got all growed-up.         

I’m with you there!

 The likes of Black Beauty, Narnia, and the Famous Five fuelled my youthful imagination. And later in life, I devoured books by Anne McCAffrey, Terry Pratchett, Stephen King, and the likes. Perhaps in this diversity of reading material, you can see the origins of my eclectic approach to writing?     

Indeed, I can.

Alas, life had other ideas. Having to earn a living and find a home took over idle fantasy. Mostly, I didn’t have the confidence. Too many putdowns and too much ridicule from family soon killed my early dreams. However, some tiny part of that little girl never gave up.   

And little girls “get all growed-up”.

 The spark grew –thirteen years in a Zen Buddhist Temple, and a lot of hard work, produced a new person—one with the confidence and drive to realise her dreams at long last. So, the writer in me was born in 2013 … just a ‘few’ years older than the gal herself … Honest! 

I believe you, thousands wouldn’t. 

The moral of the story? … Just because people tell you something, doesn’t mean it’s true. Be careful which voices you listen to. 

Now, it’s things that go bump in the night, and I bet it’s bedsprings!

Now, the question I really want to ask, especially as you’re my guest and much too polite not to answer. What prompted you to write the original Interludes?

Already, I’d published a traditional fantasy fiction book, a supernatural thriller, a book on how to self-edit, and a coming of age about a teen’s recovery from child abuse. What I hadn’t yet tried to write was romance in any form. Throughout my writing career, I’ve wanted to stretch my boundaries and challenge myself. I also hadn’t yet produced a full book of short fiction. So the idea behind Interludes, which Interludes 2 mirrors, brought changes for me in so many ways.

 And just to add to the difficulty (and fun!), I also decided to set a word target for each story. I have to say that it was easier in the writing to stick to the word limits than it was in the editing stages.

Here’s where I confess that writing clean romance soon grew boring for me. And so the book of erotic romance shorts was born. With my history of more than a decade training in a Zen temple, the prospect of publishing anything ‘naughty’ felt somewhat daunting. But by that point in my life, I had promised myself never to hide away again. 

So, we have Interludes & Interludes 2.

Romance or erotica or whatever, I always try to bring life to my fiction, and these collections of short stories offer so much more than the traditional romantic curve. It’s my sincere hope that my readers enjoy the books even more than I enjoyed writing them.

Oh heck! Harmony. Dare I ask what next?

I’m in the middle of a trilogy called The Colony that’s all about venturing into and conquering unsettled space. As well as dealing with intrigue and betrayal, you find yourself faced with the dire question: What happens when you find you’re not alone?

As well as the trilogy, I also have ideas outlined for an Interludes 3. So, watch this space!

I knew it! The girl’s hooked. She’ll be back to tell us all about it – if you subscribe to my newsletter you’ll get advance warning – link from the top of the page, but don’t go yet! The way Harmony wrote the stories is fascinating. Go ahead, Harmony.

For each story, I used prompt cards from a great creative tool called Storymatic.  Here’s what the set gave me to work with:

1. a) deaf person b) recluse … c) person in love … conflict = class reunion
2. A and B relate to the main character. C relates to the secondary character. And the final prompt gives us the conflict.
3. From the above set of prompts, I came up with REUNION—A contemporary romance in 9000 words.
4. A school reunion looms. Not wanting to arrive sad and single, Molly talks her long-time friend Paul into going with her. While the music plays, the sparks fly.

Harmony is letting us have a peep!

Molly shoved open the door and strode into the room. She saw Paul bent over the sink, splashing water on his face. With her body blocking the doorway, she crossed her arms and glared at him. Then she mouthed, carefully and exaggeratedly, ‘How dare you walk out on me.’

Guilt darkened his eyes and expression. Then he shrugged.

Molly stared.

The idiot had just shrugged at her.

Had sex then shrugged her off.

No. Just … no.

Molly ran at him and shoved him back against the sink. His head hit the mirror, and he brought his hands up in surprise. He held her at arm’s length, and her momentum died. She held his gaze, and then wriggled out of his grip. He let her go. ‘What just happened?’ she signed.

Paul looked wretched. ‘I’m sorry.’

Molly heaved in a huge breath and let it go on a long sigh. ‘What for, exactly?’

‘I shouldn’t have done that.’

She laughed, a bitter and sarcastic bark of sound. ‘Last time I checked, it takes two to tango.’

Paul stared. Blinked.

Molly said, ‘Do you see me complaining?’

A spark of amusement brightened his whole being. ‘Well, you don’t look happy.’

She rolled her eyes and readied an angry retort. Then the irony hit her, and she laughed too—full of merriment this time. ‘Not because you just f****d me.’

Paul watched her. She rolled her eyes. ‘You just left me lying there. How could you?’

Understanding dawned. How thick could he be? A sheepish expression settled on his features. ‘Um, yeah. Sorry. I panicked.’

Molly tried for humour, but it proved difficult. ‘Was I that bad?’

I’m going to sneak something in here – please don’t buy it – well. obviously buy it, but don’t start reading before you’ve added your comment or asked your question, or forget to pop back and read what Harmony has to say! Manners maketh the man, remember, and that includes ladies now we’re all equal.

 

A collection of short erotic fiction that will tickle more than your taste buds and wet more than your appetite.

With a range of genres and styles, this book has enough steam for everyone.

GREY MANCHESTER—contemporary romance in 1000 words. Will Nadine choose to drop her knife or her knickers?

DOUBLE TROUBLE—ménage à trois in 2000 words. After a dry spell, Sophia gets more than she bargained for with a solicitor and a teacher.

DRAGON KISSED—shifter romance in 3000 words. Jenna’s life is fairly run of the mill until she has a flying accident. With a dragon. All is not as it seems in this fiery romance.

TRYST—contemporary romance in 4000 words. Polly pushes the boundaries on a workplace night out.

LOVE ON THE CORNISH LINE—contemporary romance in 5000 words. Becky falls flat on her face, and madly in love. Her weekly commute home proves to be anything but routine.

THE INLAW—contemporary romance in 6000 words. At 43, amputee Carla never expected in her wildest dreams to be called a MILF by a hot young stud. Trouble is, he’s her son in law’s brother. And young enough to be her son. Sparks fly when she’s caught with her hands in the biscuit tin.

NIGHT NURSE—contemporary romance in 7000 words. Denise has only weeks left to live. What constitutes life, though? What fills the yawning hours of empty days? Who are you once the chemo and the cancer have stripped you bare? What to do?—Go out on a slow fizzle, or with a big bang?

OVERBOARD—contemporary romance in 8000 words. When Stella falls overboard in the middle of the Pacific, she gets more than she bargained for. Sharks and storms not withstanding.

ALIEN LIAISON—alien romance in 9000 words. When the military transport, Lunas Two, crash lands on Zorth, Jay is given the job of liaising with the locals. She’s seen plenty of aliens in her four years of service, but never one as finger licking good as Lemo. How far will she have to go to keep the peace?

SAVING FACE—historical romance in 10,000 words. Non-related step brother and sister, David and Annalise, break all the rules in this steamy historical romance. Forced to live apart from the love of her life and into an arranged and loveless marriage, Annalise has to grow up fast. When all is lost, will she be able to save face?

READER ADVISORY: This book contains explicit sex scenes and language hot enough to melt your eReader. For mature readers only.

 This one is available!        BUY/BORROW KU

Website: https://harmonykent.co.uk/

Story Empire (co-authored): https://storyempirecom.wordpress.com/

Amazon Author Page: author.to/HarmonysBooks

Twitter: @harmony_kent

LinkedIn: Harmony

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