Interview With Angela Kay Austin, Author of Rumer

I’m delighted to welcome Angela Kay Austin for an interview and a look at her new women’s fiction romance, Rumer.

Hi, Angela, so glad to have you here today. Tell us a little about Rumer. What inspired this story? 

My original concept for this story was slightly different from the final book.  At the time I originally began the story there were a lot of newscasts about ministers and various sexual allegations.  That made me wonder…what happens in a situation like that?  What would a “church lady” do if a man of that type cheated on her?  Would she be able to pick herself up and start over?  How would she do it?  This is my telling of how I think a woman would handle that happening to her.

Blurb: Rumer Wilson married the love of her life ten years ago, has two beautiful children, and what she believes is a wonderful life to prove it. But, does anybody ever control love? Her world spirals into an unfamiliar place of uncertainty for everything she holds dear, when her husband falls in love with a woman hiding secrets.

Sebastian Ortiz has loved many women. Rumer is a means to an end. He doesn’t want to hurt her, but he needs her – for revenge on the man who hurt his sister – the sister he’s protected from harm his whole life.

Neither Rumer nor Sebastian could imagine what comes next…

What are you working on now? Do you have any releases scheduled for this year? 

I will have a holiday release with one of my publishers, and I’m working on a few others to submit.  I am waiting to hear on other submissions, so keep your fingers crossed J

Do you have any good news you’d like to share? 

The manuscript I’m currently working on really excites me.  I’m writing in a genre that I’ve never worked with before.  It’s definitely a challenge, but I’m loving it.

What are your writing goals for this year? 

I want to finish the piece I’m working on, and submit it.  Then, begin on the second book in the series.

How do you come up with ideas? 

My story ideas come from everywhere: news, friends, family, eavesdropping J Eavesdropping is one of the best ways to get genuine dialogue!

What do you enjoy most about writing?

I enjoy creating the world.  Everything from the name of the streets to the flowers and trees to the characters and their story.  The color of paint on the walls of my characters’ homes, or cars they drive all is part of pulling a reader into my story.  I love it!

Where do you start when writing? Research, plotting, character, or…?

Depends.  With the piece I’m currently working on, I started with research.  But, with my contemporary pieces, I put my fingers on the keyboard, and started typing.

What is the best thing about being an author? 

Being an author J

What did you learn from writing your first book or what do you wish you’d known before becoming published?

There is such a thing as bad editing.

Do you have a favorite time of day for writing? 

I love writing at night.  I don’t know why, but it really allows me to forget about everything, and fall into my make-believe world.  I see my characters and they speak to me without interruption.

Do you have a favorite hero and/or heroine in your books and why? 

I really love Chad Michael Kirkpatrick from my book Sweet Victory.  But, my hero in my current MS is pretty dang awesome.

How do you balance writing and everyday life? 

That’s a hard balance, and it’s different for everyone.  I don’t have kids, so my balance is writing at night and on weekends.  But, for other authors that might not work.

Where is your favorite place in the world? 

I have so much more of the world to see…I don’t know.  But, there are some places I’ve been that I absolutely love: Italy, is one of my all time favorites.

What is your favorite food to cook or eat? 

I love love love lamb chops!

What do you like to read?

Maybe because I am working on a historical novel, but I am currently loving historical fiction.

These are few of my favorite things:

1. Books

2. Movies

3. Plays

Excerpt:

Baths were given. She read Maddie her favorite bedtime story, and turned on Tyler’s musical dancing lights. She showered, and then put on her pajamas.

Then she stopped. She stood in front of the mirror hanging on the back of her closet door, and she stared at herself. Next to Gabriela, she looked like a man. It had been six months since Tyler was born. She hadn’t lost the baby weight, yet, and it showed in her round hips and belly. She hadn’t done anything to her hair. She cut it and wore it in a pony-tail most of the time.  She never wore make-up, and she couldn’t remember the last time she’d been to a spa for anything. Who had the time? She was a full-time mom—cook, maid, chauffeur, butler, teacher, and nurse.

Tugging at her stained blue flannel pajamas with little yellow ducks, she wondered if any man would think they were sexy. They were a gift Luke and Maddie had bought her for Mother’s Day, and they were comfy. Hurriedly, she tore them off, and searched through her dresser for something silky and more grown up. The only thing she could find was a black full slip she would normally wear to church under one of her dresses.

Rumer assessed herself again, and thought much better. The black slip had thicker bra-like straps, but the silky fabric flowed softly over her breasts and hips. It had a little split on the right side, and a little strip of lace encircled the hem. She sprayed a little cucumber melon body spray on her skin; turned the radio on to one of her favorite jazz stations, and lit some vanilla scented candles. Then she focused on the bed. Snatching at the covers, she searched through the linen closet for the black satin sheets that she knew were there somewhere.

They’d never used them.

She waited in bed propped up by black satin covered pillows, and waited for her husband to come home.

At 11:30 P.M., she heard the chime of the alarm system. Luke walked down the hall to Maddie’s room, then to Tyler’s, and finally he came to their room. She couldn’t hear his footsteps, but she knew his routine. The same thing every night.

Rumer sprang from bed, and bounced into her husband’s arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and attempted to kiss him.

He kissed her on the cheek before pushing her away. “I’m tired. I had a long day at work and then I had to drop by the church, too. I really want to go to sleep.”

She retreated at his rejection. Pulling at the bottom of her slip, she tried to stretch it to cover the rest of her body, but it wouldn’t budge. The lace at the bottom ripped. She grabbed her fluffy robe from the walk-in closet, and stood there in the closet doorway, watching as Luke undressed to his boxers, prayed, and then climbed into bed and covered himself with the covers.

He buried his face in the pillows, and conceded an unintelligible, “Good night.”

“Good night.” Rumer left the room, and padded barefoot down the carpeted hallway to the laundry room. Instantly, the overpowering smell of detergent and fabric softener flooded her senses. The chill of the tiled laundry room floor cooled her feet. She reached into the wooden cabinet behind the laundry detergent, and removed the letters Gabriela had given her. Leaning against the dryer with the pages crushed to her heart, she sobbed.

Rumer cried until she had no more tears to shed.

She checked on her son, and then walked into her daughter’s room where she curled up next to her on her tiny twin bed and prayed, “Give me the strength.”

She closed her eyes, and drifted off to sleep. Maybe it was all a dream.

You can find Rumer at: Amazon.com

Bio: Angela Kay Austin has always expressed herself through words.  An infatuation with music and theater led to years playing music and extra roles in TV shows before giving way to a degree and career in radio and TV production.  After completing a second degree in marketing, Angela found herself combining her love for communications and marketing and worked in advertising and promotions for many years.  But, writing called again, which led to her first published work, which hit the best seller list for her publisher and All Romance Ebooks.

You can contact Angela at:

Website: http://www.angelakayaustin.com/

Blog: http://www.angelakayaustin.com/writing-dreaming-living/