Friday, September 3, 2010

Guest Author Series - Welcome Carie Lawson



STEPH: I'd like to welcome fellow Desert Breeze Author, Carie Lawson the blog today. Carie, congratulations on your latest release, Beyond Summer. Can you tell us a little about it?

CARIE: Beyond Summer is the story of Zane McCord, a dedicated father who mistrusts anyone with a pretty face, and Carly Peterson, the beauty queen who becomes his son's nanny. Carly glides into Zane's life with her two daughters and changes Zane's mind about beauty, until her past catches up with her.

STEPH: During what time of the day do you write?

CARIE: Typically I set aside time in the afternoon, but sometimes I have to break down and work at night. My brain doesn't feel as quick by night though. I find that much more revising is needed with the work I do after dark.

STEPH: How much time do you spend marketing? Do you have a marketing plan?

CARIE: Marketing is absolutely the hardest part of writing. I try to allot a month of "writing time" strictly to marketing. But it really intimidates me, so I tend to avoid it. When my first book, Beyond Africa, released, I focused on getting my name out locally. With Beyond Summer, I wanted to get more reviews and blog tours. Christian fiction is a pretty small community when you get right down to it. So I'm trying to focus on that market this time. Only time will tell which one works better.

STEPH: What genres do you like to write and why?

CARIE:I write Christian romance--the Christian because I couldn't write anything apart from what I believe. The romance because it's fun. Who does like that fun, fluttery, falling in love feeling?

STEPH: Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring writers?

CARIE: Absolutely. Writing is fun, but in order to be good at it--like anything else--it's necessary to spend time investing in the craft of writing. There are great books on writing, seminars, writer's groups. They are all wonderful avenues to help writers become more skilled.
STEPH: Do you have any marketing tips you can share?

CARIE: No, but if anyone reading this has any, I'd love to hear them:)

STEPH: Chocolate, Vanilla or Strawberry?

CARIE: Chocolate covered strawberries, silly.

STEPH: Print, Ebook, or both?

CARIE: Both. We've taken a great many trips to the library this summer, but I adore the convenience of my Kindle.

STEPH: What was the last movie you watched at a movie theatre?

CARIE: In a theatre...let's see, that would be Hannah Montana. However, our family hits the drive in several times a summer. It goes without saying that they are all kid's movies. Trying to think back, the last "grown up" movie I can recall seeing was Titanic.

STEPH: What's your favorite all time movie and why?

CARIE: You've Got Mail. It was charming. Every year when I shop for school supplies, I think of Tom Hank's line "I would buy you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils." I just loved it.

STEPH: Do you like to cook? Can you share a favorite dish with us?

CARIE: Cooking is the price of being a stay at home mom. And totally worth it. But no, I don't particularly love it. So I gravitate toward easy recipes. Here's one that's a hit with everyone.
4 Tbsp. melted butter
1 Tbsp. spicy mustard
2 cups bread crumbs
1 cup parmesan cheese
4 chicken breasts
Combine the butter and mustard in one bowl. Combine bread crumbs and parmesan cheese in the second. Dip chicken in the butter mixture then the bread crumb mixture. Pour the rest of the butter and bread crumbs over the chicken.
Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the bread crumbs are browned. You can add a bag of frozen broccoli to the pan if desired.

Thanks for being here today, Carie!
Good luck with sales!
Smiles
Steph

BUY LINKS FOR CARIE'S BOOK:
http://www.amazon.com/Twisted-Roots-Book-Two-ebook/dp/B0041HXOPG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1283358325&sr=8-2

http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-106/Carie-Lawson-Twisted-Roots/Detail.bok

http://www.booksonboard.com/index.php?BODY=searchresults&SEARCH=carie%20lawson

http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-twistedrootsbooktwobeyondsummer-451413-151.html

4 comments:

  1. Hey Steph!
    Thanks again for having me. I love the chicken recipe included here. It's one of my family's favorites. I hope someone can use it! Hope you are having a good day:)
    Carie

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  2. Thanks again, Steph! Hope you have a great Labor Day with your family:)
    Carie

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  3. Carie,
    Thanks so much for popping in! I can't wait to try out the chicken receipe. I hope you have a great Labor Day as well.


    Siles
    Steph

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  4. Hi Carie and Steph,

    My marketing suggestion: do those things you enjoy such as chatting with readers on social networks and such. That way, even if you don't see sales, you had fun doing it! If you make your book worth reading, readers will spread the word for you. Other than a huge promo budget, word of mouth is your best friend.

    ReplyDelete