Interview with Inspirational Author Kathryn E. Jones

Kathryn has been a published writer since 1987. Her first piece, a short article for a national magazine, got her on the publishing road. She published many short pieces after that, and worked as a journalist for many years. In 2002, her first book was published, but it wasn't until 2012, some 10 years later, that Kathryn decided to make book writing her profession.

Welcome back to my blog, Kathryn. Please tell us about your new book: The Gift: A Parable of the Key.

The gift is the third and last book in the Parable series. Virginia and Richard have lost their only daughter to crib death, and now must go on without her. But the going isn't easy, and when Joy, a young homeless girl (now teen) comes back into their life, they wonder if she's the answer to their emptiness.

What are the “five stones” mentioned in this book?

The five stones represent Listening, Trust, Optimism, Tenacity and Constancy, and were given to Virginia by God in book one (Conquering Your Goliaths: A Parable of the Five Stones) to see her through her difficulty of getting a new job. Virginia uses the five stones through each of the 3 books as she journeys through pain and ultimate discovery.

Where did you get your inspiration for this series?

I was only going to write the first book. It was to be a stand-alone book, but one day, the idea came for book 2 (The Feast: A Parable of the Ring) and I had to write the story of Virginia's marriage to Richard. As book 3 began, I realized that, for Virginia, her journey wasn't over, she yet dreamed of having a child - no matter how difficult having a child was. You could say the books are three different levels of learning. God shows Virginia how to tackle the smaller things in book 1 before the larger challenges come in book 3. And they do - come.

Please tell us about one of the main characters in this story and what you like about him or her.

I like Richard. He is the best husband for Virginia - oh, she's all over the place 'emotion' wise, and he's the rock star. Sure, Richard gets discouraged, but he is also there for Virginia. He loves her no matter what. And he doesn't give up, at least not for long, because he sees that things will always get better.

Your story sounds wonderful. Where can my readers find you online?

Please visit me at: http://www.ariverofstones.com. From there you'll be able to connect to all of my other fun haunts.

Thanks for this awesome interview, Kathryn. I hope my readers will check out this series.

Romantic Cozy Mystery Series On Audio Now

Audiobooks brings everything to life as you listen to the dynamics of the narrator. You hear the anxiety, suspense, comedy, and romance in the person’s voice as you sit and relax in an easy chair or driving down the road to work. It’s entertainment at its best.

After listening to this audiobook, Janine B. Taysom wrote: “In the past, listening to another audio book by another author, I felt that one narrator failed at delivering intriguing personalities for several characters, but Diane Lehman was ingenious and succeeded in never losing my attention. Amelia's partner, Rick, is quite the hunk and I keep wondering how long it will take before their relationship takes an enticing turn. The audio is great, but I want to have this book in my library, so I've ordered a printed copy.”

With narrator, Diane T. Lehman, she draws the listener in and helps you feel part of the adventure as she narrates the character’s feelings and conversations. She is a professional musician. A piano teacher and vocal coach, she entertains us as she captivates the listener with each character she portrays. Her inflections, intonations, and accents are amazing.

“The narrator, Diane Lehman, does an impressive job including different voices for the different characters. This gave the book a lot of interest for the reader as well as helping to identify who was speaking at the time.” --Sonja Nishimoto, Sunnie Reviews

Missing persons, bucket lists, romance, and mystery! Amelia Moore, the founder of the Moore Detective Agency, specializes in missing persons. When Mrs. Brody hires Amelia and Rick to find her missing brother, they find themselves in Bali, Indonesia. They are mystified why her brother quit his job, put his home up for sale, and ran off to this mysterious and exotic island without telling a soul.

 

“As a fan of audio books, and particularly cozy mysteries, I was looking for a new series and I found it! This first book in the Amelia Moore series hooked me right from the start. Rick and Amelia are wonderful characters that drew me into their mystery quickly. The location was beautifully described... so much so that now I need to put it on my bucket list to visit there. I am quite picky about the readers of audio books, but Diane Lehman did not disappoint! She was easy to listen to with wonderful expression, attitudes, and voices for the different characters. It only took me a chapter or two to know the voices of the main characters (which makes the book so much easier to listen to). I was actually disappointed when the book was over. Now I am anxiously awaiting Book 2 on audio. Thanks to Linda Weaver Clarke for a great book and Diane Lehman for the well-done audio!” – Nadine Hancey

Will this cozy have enough action to keep your interest? Library of Clean Reads wrote: “This is a cozy mystery, but there is also suspense, danger, and romance. Throw in two mysterious men in black – complete with black suits and sunglasses and you have all the makings of an exciting novel.”

Listen to a sample below!

-->

“I loved the pacing. I never lost interest in the story. I also loved the descriptions of the places they visited. The plot kept me on the edge of my seat. I wanted to know how the mystery would wrap up and I wanted more of Rick and Amelia's relationship. It flowed so well that I wanted to keep listening. This was an enjoyable performance to listen to and I highly recommend this book and series!!” --Melanie Valderrama, Mel’s Shelves

By the way, to listen to an audiobook, you must have an Audible.com account or log in with your Amazon account so you can download an audiobook to your e-reader.

For those interested in listening to audiobooks, check this cozy mystery out at Amazon.

LEARN HOW TO GET A FREE AUDIO BOOK BELOW FROM AUDIBLE.COM!

A FREE AUDIO BOOK of my Cozy Mystery is available if you join audible.com.

Includes two free audiobooks

Choose from 150,000+ titles

After 30 days, Audible is $14.95/mo.

Cancel anytime

Check it out at Audible, too.

Interview with a Romantic Comedy Author Brooke Williams

Brooke Williams is a former radio announcer turned stay at home mom/freelance writer/author. She has two daughters and has been married since 2002. Brooke has written numerous novels including “Someone Always Loved You,” “Beyond the Bars,” and the recent romantic comedies “Accept this Dandelion,” and “Wrong Place, Right Time.” She looks forward to releasing her first children’s book “Baby Sheep Gets a Haircut” in June 2016.

Welcome back to my blog, Brooke. Please tell us about your new romantic comedy, Mamarazzi.

Mamarazzi asks the question: is the grass REALLY greener on the other side? In the novel, a female paparazzo is thrown onto a TV show and quickly sees what life is like on the other side of the camera. Since no one knows what she did before appearing on the show, her secrets are plentiful.

This is an interesting plot. Where did you get your inspiration for this story?

This is an idea I’ve had since before college. When I was in a screenwriting class, I had to write a small portion of a screenplay and I based it on this idea, which had been in the back of my mind for a long time. At that time, I called it Paparazzi and formed a male lead character. Once I began writing romantic comedy, the idea started bugging me again. I thought, what if I changed it to a female? Called it Mamarazzi? I realized how much better that idea was and ran with it!

What a fantastic idea! What kind of research did you do for this book?

Took pictures of celebrities. Ha! Not really. I live in the Midwest. The news anchors are about as close as we get to fame around here. I can’t say that I’m one to research all that much. My fiction is very much just that…fiction! Made up from the deep creases in my mind. Scary as that is!

Ha. So funny! Please tell us about one of the main characters in this story and what you like about him or her.

I really liked the male lead, Eliot Lane. He’s a huge star, just coming into his own in the acting world. And yet he’s still humble and knows what’s important in the world. He can have anything he wants at the snap of a finger, but he doesn’t take advantage of that.

Where can my readers find you online?

I have a website, www.authorbrookewilliams.com, where I have all of my books listed and more information about anything and everything you’ve ever wanted to know. I also run a blog at that site, www.authorbrookewilliams.com/blog. I post my own stuff weekly and things for other authors as well. You can sign up to receive email notifications. I don’t send emails out more than once a week, if that. I am also very active on my author facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/authorbrookewilliams. Love hearing from all of you!!!

Thank you, Brooke, for this great interview. I love the humor you put in your books.