There are some people who just ooze style, no matter what time of day or night it is, not matter what situation is unfolding, no matter how much mayhem surrounds them.  Today’s blog guest, Jennifer St George is one of those. I’ve watched her in action at RWA conferences and thought, ‘Wow!’ Now after reading some of her recent blog posts, I know why she’s so composed and I’m more than a little jealous she’s done things I only dream of doing. (Check out this one over at Rachael John’s

So enjoy the conversation as she talks about her latest release!

Thanks so much today for hosting me on your blog today, Helene.  I’ve been enjoying following your travels around the country for the launch of Half Moon Bay.  Seems as though you’ve been having a blast!

It’s been a fabulous month, Jen! I highly recommend the wonderful Get Reading Programme to readers and writers. A great initiative. So let’s start off with what inspired The Love Deception?

Have you ever had that feeling when you wake up and you don’t know where you are? This used to happen to me all the time as I travelled extensively for work before becoming a romance writer. In those first few seconds of waking, my heart would race and my brain would scream…where am I? I’d quickly realize I was where I was supposed to be but that feeling was the inspiration for this story. I wondered what it would be like if you woke up and nothing look familiar….if you had no idea where you were. This is my heroine, Felicity Carter’s experience at the beginning of The Love Deception. From that point on, her life is a rollercoaster ride in the search for truth, understanding and ultimately…love.

Oh I can so relate to that experience. Hotel rooms are sooooo disorienting – especially in the dead of night. You enjoy setting your books in exotic locations and you  bring an authentic feel to them. How do you choose where to set your stories?

I have two ways of choosing the backdrops for my stories. The first is using places I’ve actually been to. I enjoy doing this as I love recreating the experience of the first time I visited a particular place. Trying to capture the sheer fabulousness of somewhere like Venice for my first story, The Convenient Bride, is a challenge I relish. I lived in Melbourne for six years, and the office setting where Felicity and my hero Damon Fullbright work is based on a combination of offices where I worked in that city.

The other way I choose a location is one where I would like to go.  I love researching exotic destinations. Part of The Love Deception is set in Barbados.  I’ve never been to the Caribbean but my sister-in-law is part Jamaican so I was able to interview her about the food, the culture, the smells, the atmosphere, the architecture and lots of other juicy details to, hopefully, create an authentic setting.  She seemed pretty happy with the result, so I hope readers are too.

Picking locations that you’d like to visit sounds like a perfectly acceptable way of writing and having a Jamaican contact in the family must have been a huge bonus! Insider information is always good.

You’ve had three novels published with Destiny Romance in the last year, and congratulations on that!! How are you enjoying the ‘published author ride’?

It’s been a pretty intense year but nail-bitingly exciting. I love working with my Destiny Romance editors and it’s fun travelling around the internet promoting my stories and chatting to readers. It was a wonderful thrill to do my first book signing at the Australian Romance Readers Association’s book signing in Brisbane this year.  Due to a surname mix up (I was listed as a ‘G’ surname instead of an ‘S’) I found myself sitting next to the brilliant Anne Gracie. She very kindly introduced me to some of her avid readers.

Sitting next to Anne would have been a hoot! And how good to meet all her loyal fans as well. I always sit next to Annie West and bask in her glory  :-) (and collect her free books!) Thanks for taking time out of your hectic schedule to share your story!

Thanks again for having me here today, Helene. I’m looking forward to catching up again at the Romance Writers of Australia conference in Freemantle!

Yay!! Riding the Waves in Freo is going to be fabulous!!

The Love Deception

The Love Deception is my third novel with Destiny Romance. It combines legal intrigue, courtroom drama and a dash of exotic Barbados.

When Felicity Carter wakes up naked in a strange bed, she has no idea how she got there. And no recollection of meeting the gorgeous man calmly offering her breakfast. Felicity flees – hoping that their paths never cross again.
 
The last thing she expects is to discover that her mystery man is Damon Fullbright, partner at the law firm where Felicity has just started work – and her new boss!

Damon is appalled to find the out-of-control young woman he rescued has been hired to work on his team. Apart from anything else, he doesn’t need the distraction of a hot blonde with a barrel-full of issues. But one-by-one, Felicity blows all Damon’s preconceptions out of the water. When Felicity explosively reveals her dreadful secret, will he risk his reputation and trust her to discover the truth?

Buy any of her books from:

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About Jennifer:

Jennifer St George is a romance author whose sexy stories feature courageous, career-minded heroines, strong heroes in glamourous international settings.

She spent the first 20 years of her career in corporate marketing and management consulting roles.  Some career highlights include launching Guinness beer in Russia; reaching 40 million people through a publicity campaign that ‘gave away’ a pub in Ireland and launching the Ford Ka brand in Australia. In 2000, Jennifer launched an online business and started a marketing company. She won a clutch of awards (see accolades page) including Outstanding Sunshine Coast Business Woman of the Year and the Public Relations Institute of Australia Golden Target Award. She has a graduate business degree and completed an MBA where she was presented with the Rupert Murdoch Fellowship.

A seachange to the sub-tropical paradise of Byron Bay turned her world upside down and she needed to find a new career that didn’t involve commuting to the city (not much need for high-end consulting in a small coastal town). Her sister’s love of writing led her to try her hand at romance writing and she hasn’t looked back.

Jennifer is currently a member of the Romance Writers of Australia Executive Team and is a member of Romance Writers of America and Romance Writers of New Zealand.

Find Jennifer at:

w: www.jenniferstgeorge.com

f: https://www.facebook.com/jennifer.s.george.31?fref=ts

t: https://twitter.com/JenStGeorge

g: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6521004.Jennifer_St_George

Drop by for a chance to win an e-book of Burning Lies.

And feel free to give advice to our American friends about places they should visit in Australia – I know there are so many wonderful spots to add to the list

Hello, dear friends and followers, I’ve always been a devotee of Richard Fidler on the ABC and Michael Parkinson on the BBC. Helene has finally caved in a recognised my talent. So here it is! My first interview going live. Please enjoy.

Nero, Bunson, I’m delighted to turn the spotlight on you two today. I must say I could get used to this interviewing caper – licence to ask all sorts of probing questions!

So let’s get comfy and start with a little bit about you. Nero first. Such a strong name, may I say. I’m sure the ladies love you. What tribe are you from?

I agree Nero does sound strong – more original, significant and dignified than the commonplace Blacky. My name is Piccolo Nero Cane. (Car-ne). It’s Italian for Little Black Dog. Nero is used like Prince Henry of Wales uses Harry.

The ladies adore me – especially the receptionist at the vet clinic and the concierge at the boarding kennels. I had a thing for the golden Lab next door to us. Unfortunately she passed away from snakebite. My heart broke when it happened. (*sniff*)

My physical tribe is a black lab cattle dog cross. Mum was purebred cattle dog and dad was the black lab (I was told that dad was a fence-jumping opportunist). I remember Mum fondly, yet distantly. My Dad means nothing to me. Gabba is everything now.

Mine and Bunson’s tribal heritage is in fact the same as yours, Brother Zeus. Codus Canis Spiritis (translate: The Canine Spiritual Code). We are adventurous, affectionate, loyal and give of ourselves entirely and only to the humans we are devoted to. We also pose for photographs for different reasons – professional and otherwise – it’s part of ‘the Code’.

Nero, I’m honoured to meet other members of the CSC! Not many in Cairns…

So what’s Gabrielle’s writing routine like? How do you keep her focused on her writing? Any tips for other minders?

N: Walkies come first after coffee and diary planning. If she’s working on something for her employer we’ll pose for photographs and then she disappears into the office for hours. If we’re in the office with her we sleep at her feet until she either breaks for meals and a cuppa and we get a toilet opportunity. If we’re outside, we lay about in the sun and keep an eye out for any passing kangaroos or other wildlife in the area.

B: When she’s working on her books it’s again done after walkies. However on the ‘book’ days she talks and talks and talks all the way through the walky asking us questions about has she got the right POV, is her GMC strong enough, are plot wrinkles forming etc. Before she’d say she hasn’t found her ‘voice’ yet, but lately she’s been saying she’s ready for the crit partners to run their eye over the work as she’s got more of herself in her narratives and dialogue.

N: We regularly contribute to her overcoming word blindness by doing something similar to you, Brother Zeus. If we’re inside with her, rather than put the tennis ball in her lap, I’ll put my chin on her thigh and sigh a lot. This gets her out of the office to stretch and we go into the garden and kick a ball around.

B: I do a similar thing to the chin resting that Nero does. I take it a little further and put my front paws on the arms of her office chair and stick my nose in her ear until she gets up and goes outside with us.

N: If we’re outside we stand at the office window and stare or bark at her until she looks at us. Then we either wince and dance around or run to the back door. It gets her out of her chair see?

B: My advice is if you have a writer then you really should do this ‘distraction tactic.’ It’s for their own good.

Excellent advice, gentlemen!

Bunson, did your parents also have a distinguished heritage? Your name sounds very scientific. Does that make you an analytical kind of hound? How do you assist in the research or does Gabrielle have her own methods?

I came from the shelter – an RSPCA rescue. I got no idea what physical tribe I am. I’m definitely cattle dog and beagle with maybe some coolie or border collie in me. I look like a science experiment, that’s why they called me Bunson Burner. Most of the time it’s just Bunson.

I wish to add that like you,  Zeus, we’re of a more sophisticated perspective and are established agents of the Code. We have reached “Significant Practitioner” status amongst the ranks (it’s a bit like Helene being a senior pilot and qualified to train junior aviators… it’s about the number of hours clocked… am sure you’d understand).  Nero and I can refer to each other as ‘Brother,’ (and we’d like to think we can call you that too, Zeus.) So can those of higher ranking. Those of lower rank cannot. So in a way we are distinguished.

Also, as part of Codus Canis Spiritis, we observe a ‘balance life bias love’ approach. It’s an intrinsic part of who we are and strive to be. Our motto is ‘we give, we are, we pose for the camera.’

I wouldn’t say I was analytical per se. Investigative yes. I am after all, part Beagle.

In terms of her research Gabba stares at the computer and looks for as much as she can that’s written on the particular subject. Both Nero and I assume our position (outdoors or indoors) and leave her to it until we think she’s due to come out what she calls, “The Cave.”

Gentlemen, I’m honoured to call you brothers. Truly Honoured.

Tell us a bit about a normal day in a writing dog’s life. Early risers? Long walks, swims? What’s the rhythm to your day?

B: We’re early risers. As soon as there’s movement in the house we’re at the back door. Whether the sun is up or not. We have a heated dog kennel so we’re cozy and toasty over night but we love both Gabba and hubby so much, we like to see them as early in the day as possible.

B: Then we take LOOOONG walks with Gabba – and love it. On the weekends we go down the paddock with the hubby. Then it’s breakfast and depending on the day we supervise Gabba’s activity in the cave or hang out with hubby around the farm.

N: The rhythm is cruisy and comfortable. It’s nice, we really are lucky. She could be a 9-5er somewhere and away from us most of the time.

B: Or live in a suburban block without our glorious 50 acres.

Sounds idyllic! Perhaps I could come and interview you at home. I like the sound of a heated kennel!

But how can you tell when Gabrielle’s on a roll and the words are flowing? Anything you do to assist?

N: She laughs in the cave. Frankly, both of us go to sleep – we’ll leave her to it as much as we can to not interrupt flow but we know it’s good for her to get out and have a break from the screen so we let her know when it’s time.

What does she do if her muse is on holidays? Helene claims her muse is never missing in action but I’ve know there are days when she has to go for a long walk to sort things out…

B: This is when she goes away from us a bit. She has to go to town fairly often for errands, but sometimes she gets this blank look on her face, leaves and she’s gone for hours. Apparently she goes to the coffee shop and stares at passersby. When she gets home, she pulls out a little notebook then sits with us on the verandah and scribbles and scribbles and scribbles and scribbles in it.

Oh that does sound familiar. Perhaps Gabrielle and Helene are from a similar tribe…

Now a couple of quick questions for both of you. What’s your favourite spot in the house?

B: Wherever Gabba is.

N: Or in front of the fire (during winter) and in the hallway in front of the air conditioner (during summer).

What would you prefer to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner?

N: The cat’s food – if she leaves it around it’s fair game.

B: Yep, I agree

Cat food? What is this magical thing? I’ve never tasted it…

Who’s your favourite animal hero?

N: Our predecessor Blue. He reached a higher rank amongst the code (Master) and he is revered. And we don’t mind the Footrot Flats dog.

B: Yeah, and Gromit from the Wallace and Gromit series is cool too.

Oh yes, Jesse from Footrot Flats was a major crush of mine… Sigh…

Nero, Bunson, thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to chat today. It’s been wonderful finding out more about you and also Gabrielle. I look forward to her launch party soon! We’ll be there to help you celebrate

Ciao for now.

xxx

Zeus

Gabrielle is a journalist/online writer with a focus on pet health articles. Her work has seen her write many things from flea management to poly myositis. She has many articles published as a freelance journalist and former advertising features writer for a regional newspaper. Gabrielle is currently completing the Certificate Three in Film making.

She makes her fiction writing debut securing a place in the Romance Writers of Australia’s highly contested 2013 Little Gems Anthology.

Gabrielle loves her dogs, writing, her shoe collection, friends and husband. (not necessarily in that order).

Find Gabrielle’s blog at: www.gabbawrites.blogspot.com.au

Follow Gabrielle on twitter: @gabbawrites

The winner from Book’d Out’s blog was Heidi – the book is winging its way to her letterbox now!

The winner of the Australian Romance Readers Association release day blog is Barbara and Australia Post will be taking care of that tomorrow!

The two winners of the Good Reads promotion were Michelle from Hercules, USA and Gayle from Council Bluff, USA. Their books will no doubt take a little longer to arrive as they have to negotiate two sets of customs officials. Thanks to everyone who dropped by to be part of the discussion – as always it was fun!!

I’m over at Cathryn Hein’s fabulous Friday Feast waxing lyrical about Capt G’s endeavours on our recent sailing trip from Brisbane to Cairns. I’m even prepared to share a couple of my sure fire recipes so drop by and join in the conversation! (Zeus is, of course, taking part!!)

Find us at www.caththrynhein.com

And if you need a great book for the long weekend then check out Heartland, Cathryn’s latest release!

But courtesy of a well stocked cab rank (and Adelaide does public transport well) we made it to the Marion Centre in plenty of time.

Thanks to Jane and Tracey from the Marion Library at the Marion Cultural Centre for organising the event – they even had a Green Room for us to relax in before the talk started. I felt very pampered

The wonderful booksellers from Collins Booksellers Edwardstown were there to support the event. Thanks to Sonia and  Joan for being so proactive, and to Tarran for running such a great social media campaign. The audience was engaging and there were more familiar faces.

I think the highlight of question time was the lovely retired gentleman in the front row who happily admitted to reading Fifty Shades of Grey. He also thought it was pretty heavy going, but he’d persevered! Well done that man, you’re a more determined reader than me!

Thanks to everyone in South Australia who’s attended events over the last four days. It’s been a privilege to be part of the Get Reading touring campaign. Make sure to check out the Get Reading site for details on more authors coming your way. And don’t forget to vote for your favourite Australian Books!

The event was held in the Naracoorte Town Hall, a gracious old building with high ceilings and an honour board of from WW2. Thanks to Naracoorte librarians Merrin and Paula not only for welcoming us so warmly, but also for making the most amazing sandwiches. Curry egg and lettuce will always take me straight back to my grandma’s tiny kitchen. We tried to snaffle a boxful for the road. Thanks to so many of the audience who travelled a long way to chat with me yesterday. A very big thanks to Sam and Megan on holidays from Cairns for coming along with Sam’s mum! It was also very special to meet Bet, who at 90 is still running the local writers group – an inspirational woman.

Collins Booksellers from Mt Gambier attended both events so thanks for making the journey.

We headed back to Mt Gambier and the blue lake which sadly was looking more a midnight blue than its usual brilliance. Last night’s event was at the library and what a library it was! They even have a scuba diva on the roof – I felt very much at home in the tropical children’s section!

Thanks Kristi and Nicky for staging the event. The vibrant library is a credit to them. It was lovely to meet Jesse from the local radio station who was the MC for the evening. A very big thank you to everyone who came along and laughed at my lame jokes! It was a very chilly night and a warm couch and hot drink were calling me so I appreciate the large turn out.

We fly back to Adelaide this morning for my South Australian event at the Marion Centre. It’s been a privilege to talk to so many people and to visit such beautiful parts of this state. I have many more places on my revisiting list!

And for more information on visiting author events in your area check out the Get Reading page!

Today we headed to Mitcham Library where Wendy and her enthusiastic team had rounded up another wonderful audience for me. Thanks also to Wendy from ‘Booked in Adelaide’, an independent bookseller. Lovely to have you there.

It’s always great to see a fellow author in the audience and Victoria Purman is one of South Australia’s newest contracted writers so look out for her debut novel in three months!

From there I went to the FiveAA radio studios to chat with the delightful Belinda Heggen – what a wonderful insightful interviewer.  (Have to admit to a fan girl moment as Lisa McCune was in the studio before me – who knew I could be lost for words!!)

From there we headed to the Onkaparinga Library, The Hub. Julie, Kathryn and their team had the wine flowing and the tables laden with yummy food by the time we found our way around the shopping centre one more time. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing and me with a sat nav is not a good combination…

Thanks to the wonderful audience, including fellow authors Sandra O’Grady and Leesa Bow, for coming along for the evening. Some great questions! Also a very big thank you to Becky and Mike from Shakespeare’s Bookshop for bringing all my books to the event. It’s wonderful to have two vibrant independent booksellers at both of today’s events.

Tomorrow the lovely Bethany and I head for Mt Gambier and Naracoorte – another region I’m looking forward to discovering.

It’s the oldest winery in the Barossa and its heritage shows in the magnificent buildings, stately old trees and wonderful aged oak barrels. I knew as we turned into the carpark and faced an immaculate hedge that there was magic in the afternoon.

This is what greeted us as we headed for the venue.

I’ve always wanted to own a Citreon Deux Chevaux or 2CV and here was a mint condition model gracing a courtyard that belonged in Europe.

As we walked into the venue room with its high ceilings, gorgeous lights and authentic decor I felt the butterflies flutter in my stomach. For the first time in my writing career I finally felt like an author. It was both strange and humbling. Luckily everyone was so warm and friendly I didn’t have time for nerves!

The Friends of the Barossa Library had cooked up a delicious array of treats that would have been right at home on a High Tea cake stand at the Ritz. Add in some fragrant tea and delicate wines and the afternoon was perfect. Thanks to Julie and her team from the library for helping to make the event run so smoothly.

Thank you also to the many people who were kind enough to buy Half Moon Bay and queue for a chat. I had several conversations that helped to crystallise ideas for my next novel so an extra thank you to those who shared their memories with me. Thanks also, Colleen, from Raven’s Parlour Bookshop for coming along to support the event. We love local booksellers!

I wish I’d had enough time to do the full tour of Seppeltsfield Winery, but I had to make do with a brief history and a trip to see the 100 year old barrels. They’ve been laying down a barrel of port to be kept for 100 years since the late 1880s. I did find my birth year, but resisted the temptation to buy a small bottle…

I’ll be back to visit the Barossa again, but next time Capt G is coming too! Until then, thanks again for a wonderful afternoon!

]]> http://www.heleneyoung.com/2013/06/seppeltsfields/feed/ 11 http://www.heleneyoung.com/2013/06/knowledge-in-gosnells/ http://www.heleneyoung.com/2013/06/knowledge-in-gosnells/#comments Sat, 01 Jun 2013 11:11:15 +0000 Helene http://www.heleneyoung.com/?p=7602 Once I got over the shock of 3 degrees on the temperature gauge the walk to the Green House was an invigorating start to the day. Drop by the website for the Green House and check out the time lapse video of the restaurant’s construction. It is truly unique with delicious food and a quirky ambience that would keep me coming back if I could! (Thanks to Ali for taking me there – she has great taste in restaurants!)

After a very yummy breakfast it was time to head off to Gosnells Knowledge Centre to meet Lizanne and her staff.  It was another wonderful morning with interesting questions and a couple of familiar faces. Thanks to Russell from Dymocks Carousel for providing books and being there on a long weekend! With the gorgeous weather I was delighted to see so many people had stayed in town – I was tempted to drive direct to beach

My West Australian leg of the tour is finished now and I’m typing this in Adelaide. It’s been a fabulous few days with so many wonderful readers, librarians and booksellers welcoming me to their state.

I’ll be back so see you all again next year!

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