Krista Ames talks about Second Chances

Today I welcome Krista Ames to my blog. She is a fellow Ruby Lioness Press author and Michigander.

Tell us about yourself: Hi Melissa!  My name is Krista and I’m a wife with an amazing husband. I have 4 kids ranging from 13 to 6 which makes my house totally chaotic J  We live in Michigan and have 2 chocolate lab sisters and 2 cats.  I’m a stay at home mom even though all my kids are in school so I get to write all day long except to do laundry or dishes and whatever else needs
done.  

What television sitcom is most like your family? Why?  Good question.  I guess it
could be a lop-sided Brady Bunch since we are a blended family, 3 kids are mine and 1 is my step daughter.  We need an “Alice” if for no other reason than for my own sanity lol.  

What’s your favorite thing to do to relax?  My all-time favorite is to take a hot bubble bath in the dark with candles and a quiet bathroom, which means I need to lock the door so the kids will leave me alone. My only problem right now is we are in a construction phase so no bath tub. :(

Do you prefer…
Public speaking or public singing? Oh I don’t like either.  Seriously. But if I have to pick one, I suppose I’d take singing, like karaoke maybe and if I was drinking
lol

Writing in a notebook or typing on the computer?  All my notes and ideas go into a notebook and then make it onto the computer.  I’ve been trying to convert but I always have my paper and pencil close by.

Coke or Pepsi?  My husband would so laugh at this but I was a diehard Pepsi fan until I met him and now I drink Coke.  

Living without your cell phone or living without your computer?  I would rather live without my computer because I can do everything on my cell phone.

Now about you as an author…
Did you always want to be an author?  No, I wanted to be a Veterinarian or an Interior Decorator.

What authors had an impact on you growing up and as an adult?  Honestly I didn’t even like to read when I was growing up.  If I did it was really rare. 
As an adult however, it was reading stories from Linda Lael Miller and
Debbie Macomber that made me want to create my own stories.  

Did anyone in your life influence you or encouraged you to be a writer? (teacher, family member, friend) Well pretty much all my family encouraged me. 
My parents definitely. My aunts think it’s very cool and my sister and
niece buy everything I write.  My husband has been my biggest supporter and my kids want to write with me. :)  oh and our new kitten likes to sit on my shoulder and jump onto my laptop because she loves the sound of the keys when I type.

What is your favorite aspect or writing? Your least favorite?  My favorite part
of writing is just letting my ideas burst onto my paper. I always know where the start is and I always know how I want the ending to happen but the middle always surprises me. My least part of writing is when I get stuck.  Otherwise I love writing and even editing.

What aspect of writing would you most like to improve on?  Uhm, probably the length of my writing.  I’d like to write longer works.  I’d also like to branch out into other genre’s as well. 

Do you have any “must haves” with you while you’re writing?  Most definitely……paper, pencil and caffeine. Sometimes music or mushy movies help me get into the groove.

Do you have a common theme or item that appears in each of your books?   No not so far anyway.  
 
What have you learned the most from being in the writing business?  That it’s a
tough business and you kind of have to be a perfectionist of sorts when editing
before submitting and to not let it depress you if you get rejected.  One rejection doesn’t mean anything, only that someone else might just love it!

Tell us about your latest release: (blurb, excerpt, cover)  My latest release is a Navy novella called Second Chances.  The blurb and the excerpt can probably tell you better about the story…..

Blurb
If you could get a Second Chance...

When the love of Dana's life leaves without a word, she is forced to move on with her life.  Despite loving him, she believes she will never see him again but, little does she know, she's being set up for a night that will change her life
forever.

Nicholas, A Navy man, did the only thing he could to save the woman he loved.  Driven by a secret, he disappeared and now returns, years later, with hope for love.  With one opportunity, will he be able to make things right, or is it just too late? Will she deny any desire for Second Chances?


Excerpt:
    He watched her knees buckle a bit as Dana clutched at Amy’s arm,
never taking her eyes off him. She said something he couldn’t make out—he never was good at reading lips. He was good at reading body language, however, and he knew in an instant what she meant to do just as she turned and made a dash for the patio door. Instinctively, he propelled himself forward, his body miraculously unfrozen. He had to go after her. He was the reason she was bailing after all. He knew from the look on her face. He passed Dave and Amy and shook his head when Dave tried to speak.

    "Don’t. I’m sorry. I have to go after her.”

    He closed the sliding door behind him and stood on the deck, searching the darkness. She wasn’t there. She couldn’t have gone far. She didn’t know anyone else here, and he doubted she was familiar with the area. He descended the stairs and walked out onto the yard along the water’s edge.
Where’d she go? He started walking and, with relief, caught sight of a silhouette against the water toward the end of his property.

    He approached her quietly. She stood, arms hugging tightly around her middle, and held her shoes in her hand while the gentle waves splashed up and over the seawall. Damn, he wanted to touch her. It’d been so long. He couldn’t deny the growing ache pushing against his heart and a sudden tightening of his groin at the sight of how well that dress fit her curves, but this definitely wasn’t the time for his libido to come to life.

    He wanted to turn her, hold her in his arms, and nuzzle her beautiful neck just below her ear like she’d always loved. Would she still like it? Maybe she wouldn’t. Maybe he didn’t know her anymore, but he couldn’t stop himself. God, he wanted this woman still. He wanted her to know how very sorry he was for hurting her, and why. But she wouldn’t welcome his touch, especially now. He was certain of it. She’d likely administer a low blow, which he would totally deserve, and bolt. She was unpredictable that way. He loved that about her, too.

    He was only human, however, and he couldn’t not touch her. She knew he was there—he’d seen her form go stiff at his presence. Careful not to scare her, he slowly ran his fingertips over her bare shoulders and down her arms, feeling her shiver at his touch before she took a step away. “Don’t, Nicholas,”she said in a low, shaky whisper.


Links:  
http://rubylionesspress.com/shop/second-chances/

http://www.amazon.com/Second-Chances-ebook/dp/B007KO5OMI/ref=sr_1_1?
ie=UTF8&qid=1332256535&sr=8-1

www.smashwords.com/books/view/142186

www.allromanceebooks.com/product-secondchances-753069-149.html

www.barnesandnoble.com/w/second-chances-krista-ames/1109557099?ean=2940014310932&itm=1&usri=krista+ames

Now some more specific questions about your book...How did you decide on your story plot?  I’m not really a plotter actually.  I just came up with the idea of a Navy guy losing the girl( I love military men) and wrote the beginning, thought about how I wanted it to end then created everything in between.  This particular time I picked the hero first and started writing.  

How did you choose your characters names and location for your story?    Well, I have a huge word document that has hundreds of names on it. I pick up names everywhere and when I like one I just add it to the list.  It grows constantly.  From that list, I just decided which names I liked that sounded good
together.

Do you have a favorite scene? Why?  I a couple scenes that I really like but in order not to give anything away, I’ll pick the one at the beginning, actually the opening scene where my heroine Dana is on a plane and not enjoying it at all. 
 
Do you have a character that you identify with? Who and why? I’m not sure that I directly identify with any of them, but I do think I have a connection with all of my characters in a way. I find myself mimicking them somewhat
off of my friends and family.  I think it’s kind of funny but depending on how the character is acting, it makes me think of someone in my life that may act like that and I picture that the whole way through.  I really don’t think any of my characters have been just like me though.  
 
Let our readers know how they can get a hold of you… I love visitors so they can find me at my blog, www.apassionforromance.blogspot.comor my website, www.kristaames.com.  I am also on twitter, www.twitter.com/kristaames and facebook, www.facebook.com/kristaames.  My email is krista@kristaames.com.

Is there anything else that you want to share… feel free!! Just that I’ve got a lot of new stuff in the works so I hope readers come and visit often to see what’s new!! 
Melissa thank you so much for having me on your blog.  I had a great time answering questions.  I love it when they’re a challenge and make me really think about things.  
 
Thank you for coming by Krista!  It's always a pleasure to chat with other authors, especially ones who understand the Michigan weather! :)

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