1. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m the author of forty novels in romance and women’s fiction, including the New York Times bestseller A PLACE TO CALL HOME and the Wall Street Journal and Kindle bestseller, THE CROSSROAD CAFÉ. I have several million copies in print, and my work has been translated into many foreign languages. Since 2000 I have also been a partner and editorial director of Bell Bridge Books, a Memphis-based small press publishing a variety of popular fiction.
2. Describe your book ‘THE CROSSROADS CAFE’ in 30 words or less.
Horribly scarred by a fiery car wreck, a Hollywood beauty hides from the world at her grandmother’s isolated North Carolina cabin. But she can’t resist her motherly cousin, Delta, who runs the famous Crossroads Café, or the allure of a New York architect who, like her, has rejected the world after a tragedy derailed his life.
3. What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Creating the deeply damaged worlds of the main characters, especially for the heroine, a burn victim. I did a lot of research on the treatment of burn injuries.
4. What books have had the greatest influence on you?
I revere the romance novels of the legendary Tom and Sharon Curtis, the historical novels of Lucia St. Clair Robson, and classic young adult novels including Charlotte’s Web and Where the Red Fern Grows.
5. Briefly share with us what you do to market your book?
Almost all my marketing is online now, via email, e-newsletters, social media and galley-sharing sites such as Net Galley. Plus, as a hybrid author writing for my own small press, I have access to good promotion platforms at online booksellers like Amazon.
6. How do you spend your time when you are not writing?
My day job as editorial director at Bell Bridge Books keeps me very busy. Also, my hobbies include knitting, painting and jewelry making.
7. What are you working on next?
I’ve launched a series of novellas that are spin-offs of the world from The Crossroads Café. First is THE BISCUIT WITCH (now available.) By August I’ll publish THE PICKLE QUEEN, and in the fall, THE KITCHEN CHARMER. There will be more Crossroads Café novellas after those.
