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Today, I’ve got a special treat for you. Romantic Suspense author Rachel Brimble has dropped by, and I sat her down for a little chat. :) Thanks, Rachel, for coming over to our little castle.

Author Rachel Brimble

Author Rachel Brimble

So tell me, how did you first come to write romantic suspense?

Rachel: It’s always what I’ve always love to read – I dreamed for years of actually writing a novel and when my youngest daughter started school full-time, it was time to get serious!

I completed my first novel, sent it off to The Wild Rose Press and the rest is history :)

Congrats on achieving that dream… So what inspired your latest novel, Paying The Piper?

Rachel: Paying The Piper went through many drafts and many different directions before I found the story the characters wanted me to tell. This book started out as a romantic suspense with the villain in the opening scene but as I wrote, it became clear to me it wasn’t a romantic suspense at all. It is a darker, grittier contemporary romance about the heroine’s struggle to be heard.

To answer your question of what inspired it? I can only say the scene where the hero and heroine meet came to me fully formed. After that, I wrote what the characters told me :)

Pesky things, those mouthy characters!  I hope they treated you well. :) By what authors would you say you are influenced?

Rachel: Nora Roberts, definitely – I also enjoy the homely aspect of Robyn Carr. For humor I love Jilly Cooper. My childhood favourites and the reason I began writing in the first place is due to British authors, Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie.

Any interesting stories to share about your road to publication?

Rachel: I don’t know that my story is any different than a thousand other authors. Unfortunately, the chances of writing your first novel and being the next big thing are very, very slim. My story is simple, I started writing short stories and once I had some success with them, I moved on to novels.

I am proud that every novel I have written has been published, yay! :D

Congrats on that! Yes, you’re right. That’s very hard to do, for some, as my readers are probably no doubt aware. ;)

Now that Paying the Piper is out, what can curious fans expect from you next?

Rachel: I am thrilled to say that my next two novels have been signed with an agent. The first one is under consideration as we speak, and the second is going through a final round of edits before we submit.

The one under consideration is my first romantic suspense for three years and we are hoping it will be the first in a trilogy set in a small seaside town in South West England.

Sounds interesting! We’ll keep our fingers crossed for you!

If you weren’t a writer, what career might you have pursued instead?

Rachel: Anything to do with books and I would have been happy! Anything from a librarian or working in a bookshop to a proof-reader or editor. I LOVE books, it’s as simple as that :)

Do you have any advice for aspiring Romance authors?

Write! It’s a craft that can be learn, anyone can do if they are determined enough. The best advice I was ever given was to allow yourself to write a ‘crappy’ first draft. it can be edited!

So true! Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers? Would you like to share a bit about Paying the Piper with our readers?

I’d love to let your readers know that I have guest authors on my blog every Tuesday and Thursday so please pop along and say hi! Here on my links:

http://www.rachelbrimble.com/

http://rachelbrimble.blogspot.com/

https://twitter.com/#!/RachelBrimble

Hope to see you there! In the meantime, here is the blurb and all important ‘buy link‘ for Paying The Piper – enjoy!

cover art for Paying the PiperNightclub manager, Grace Butler is on a mission to buy the pub where her mother’s ashes are scattered – except the vendor wants to sell to anyone but her. And the vendor happens to be her father…with a secret Grace will do anything to uncover.

Social worker and all-round good guy, Jimmy Betts needs cash to buy a house for three special kids before their care home closes. In a desperate bid for cash, he agrees to a one-time ‘job’ for bad-man Karl Butler. But in a sudden turn of events, Jimmy finds himself employed by Karl’s beautiful, funny and incredibly sexy daughter, Grace.

Their lives are so different except for one unifying thread – they are both trying to escape the binds of their tyrannical fathers. But is the key to their liberty each other?

If you’d like a copy, it’s available at:  http://www.lyricalpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3_25&products_id=424

Rachel: Thanks so much for having me here today!

You’re most welcome, Rachel! We enjoyed having you!

Folks, thanks for stopping by and looking in on Ms. Rachel Brimble‘s special visit. She’s graciously agreed to give away a PDF copy of any book from her backlist. So, do say hello, ask a question, whatever comes to mind. Don’t forget to leave your email address! I’ll make sure we pick a winner sometime tomorrow. Oh, and don’t forget to stop by her blog, and see who she’s interviewing today. :) If you’d like to follow her (and me, pretty please?), too, that’d be great. :)

Until later, then. Happy reading!

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