A big welcome today to LK Hunsaker, who is celebrating and preparing for the lease of her latest book “Off The Moon” with a month-long blog tour arranged by Classic Romance Revival. I have the honor of “launching” the tour on my blog which is a lot of fun. (If you’d like to see the full itinerary, please visit the CRR website here for a full list of hosting blogs) Don’t forget to leave your comments! One person from each blog will be drawn to receive a signed, mailed copy of the short story LK has written as a bit of a prequel to Off The Moon, called Toward The Sky, plus there will be a signed print book drawing for anyone who comments on at least 8 blogs!

Anyway, enough of that! Welcome to RomanceWriteup, LK….

Hello Jude and thanks so much for not only having me here today, but also for the wonderful tour setup! This is my first book tour and I’m looking forward to a fun month!

With the beginning of the tour, I thought I’d introduce myself and talk a bit about what I do:
“Literary Romance with an Artsy Twist”

Readers who see my tagline often ask what I mean by “literary romance” – a fair question since it’s not an official genre. Literary fiction involves heavy exploration of societal issues, social problems and injustices and morality questions, psychological impact of relationships and culture. It can be quite short as in John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men” or very long such as Leo Tolstoy’s “Anna Karenina.” It often infuses the writer’s thoughts and sometimes rambles beyond the story and into ideas. Romance as a genre has a strict guideline: heavy focus on the relationship between two characters where they meet, are parted in some way for some reason, and come together at the end for a happily ever after. Anything not necessary for the specific plot of the story is not included. It most often runs between 60,000 and 100,000 words (around 250-300 pages).

I combine the two. I write romance. The burgeoning love relationship between two characters is always central. However, I also throw in literary elements to look more deeply at the “why” of each: why they are attracted to each other instead of someone else, why they are hesitant about it if they are, where they came from, their family histories, and how society has affected them and their goals and needs. I’ve covered such topics as parenting and the effects of different styles, grief and how it affects each of us differently, racial issues with a half Native American character who grew up in the 50s and early 60s in a small-minded small town, child abuse, clashes between the wealthy and working classes, and women’s issues. Unlike much literary fiction, however, my stories are not heavy and sullen. They have heavy, sullen moments, but the overall feel is light and hopeful and I love to throw in bits of humor. The end, as in romance fiction, is always upbeat. I refuse to leave a reader on a down note.

Within my stories, you will always find the arts. I was raised in a highly artistic family and it’s embedded in my nature. So far, I have novel characters who are dancers, singers, painters, landscape designers, and musicians. A short story series in progress deals with a sculptor and a gardener who used to be an architect. Another revolves around a songwriter with a family-disrupting mental illness. I’m music obsessed and it fills my stories, even those that don’t revolve around music. You’re likely to find some of my own fave singers and bands mentioned in each. And you’ll find music industry issues, such as manipulation of artists by big recording companies and marketing methods that may or may not be quite truthful. Did you know it’s not unheard of to change an artist’s age for marketing purposes? I have that issue coming up in a future book, which will actually help my singer disguise her identity.

A bit about my background that leads me to write the kind of stories I write: along with an artsy family and many art and music courses, I have worked for a musician helping with online promotion, have networked with musicians outside my family, and have a psychology degree. Let me note I am not a psychologist or counselor, at least not yet. I do work for a sandplay therapy network. And I have always studied human nature and have paid attention to nuances of personalities. This has been great help in making my characters very deep and real.

So, there you have the basics. Questions? Leave them in the comments and I’ll get back with you! Be sure to check my blog this month, also, for Off The Moon related interviews. [http://lkhunsaker.blogspot.com] The first one is up today and features Vicki Blankenship, indie singer/songwriter and president of IndieGrrl.com. Vicki was gracious enough to allow use of lyrics for one of her songs from her newest album at the end of Off The Moon as the music epilogue. I have one in each of my books, so far, always by indie artists.

Find my website for more info, plus a free download of the beginnings of each of my novels:
http://www.lkhunsaker.com

Here’s the blurb for the book I’ll focus on this month on tour, release date November 27th!

Off The Moon
LK Hunsaker

“Riveting” Ryan Reynauld is immersed in a world of music, parties, and temporary companionship. Having risen to the top of the pop charts, his biggest concern is objecting to the way his music is produced. That is, until he finds a young woman standing on a window ledge. Against the advice of family and friends, and through media attacks and fan protests, Ryan determines to care for her himself, making a promise that threatens to destroy his career.

Convincing the skittish girl she can learn to trust again comes with a steep price. Sometimes the path to recovery begins by allowing your world to implode.

Elucidate Publishing
Print ISBN 978-0-9825299-0-4
Ebook ISBN 978-0-9825299-1-1

Thanks again, Jude!

Next up: Artistic Vision and Creative Doubt with Jane Richardson, Nov. 3
http://janerichardsonhomethoughts.blogspot.com/

Release Day! What a grand feeling – the first thought I had actually, when my eyes opened in that grey chill just before dawn, and I treated myself to a tiny space of just simply enjoying it before hauling myself out of bed to do life…

A Thick Black Line is now “out there” and, even though this is now book number 3, the excitement of it isn’t diminished by the familiarity of the process. It’s a funny thing – each one is different, each one has it’s own “identity” and it’s own special place, and it’s wonderful to be able to celebrate the “birthday” of my latest with as much enthusiasm as I did the others.

In some ways, A Thick Black Line represents a milestone in my writing life. The book provided the opportunity to explore the suspense genre, with a sinister undertone to the plot that adds an interesting dimension to the relationship between the hero and heroine. I found it a fascinating catalyst, as it raised all kinds of questions that demanded answers, and opened possibilities that might have remained closed had the plot been structured in any other way.


Bo and Nic, the heroine and hero, both recognise this particular issue:

“Would we even be here having this conversation if it weren’t for this whole crazy, stupid situation?”

He considered that. She could see him thinking it through, like he wanted to give an honest answer. “I don’t know. But I don’t think it’s relevant. We are here, and I don’t think going back is an option.”

These two lines are enormously ironic. They speak of the enormous impact the situation – the suspense, the intrigue, the danger – has on their relationship. They also suggest the inevitability of it, and the process that they are drawn into despite having drawn A Thick Black Line around their personal choices…

While fundamentally “classic” romance – real romance with heart – A Thick Black Line has enough of the suspense factor to intrigue and tease, and adds a little sinister something to the traditional…

Here’s the blurb, and a short excerpt. You can find A Thick Black Line at:

http://www.bookstrand.com/product-athickblackline-13953-330.html

Blurb:

Bo Carmichael has drawn a thick black line around her heart, and with good reason. She has worked hard to overcome the anguish of betrayal and the devastation it wreaked in her family’s lives, and she’s now close to realizing her dreams. There simply isn’t place in this equation for emotional entanglements, especially not with Nic Sinclaire, the only man who has the ability to breach her defenses. From their first encounter, an impossible chemistry rages between them – a crackling heat that threatens to melt the ice surrounding her. A bizarre twist makes Nic a constant companion and self-appointed protector. As Bo’s barriers shift and crumble, she can no longer ignore the powerful emotions his proximity evokes…

Excerpt:

“Need a hug?” Now she was surprised, and it showed in the widening of her eyes and the quick look of warning. “Just a hug. You can trust me.”
He stood so close that some of the dampness of him brushed onto her shirt. She imagined being there in his arms. He’d be cool from the water, but still strong, and still enormously tempting.
“It’s not you I’m worried about.” Honesty seemed the only option. It had clearly surprised him, because he stopped rubbing his hair with the towel, and the blue of his eyes deepened a little.
“Because you want more?”
“Yes.” And she did. Much more. The truth of it loomed, suddenly huge, the only reality in the moment, a kind of tense and breathing thing that wouldn’t be denied. “At least right now I do, but it’s just a moment…” She let that trail into silence, conscious that too much had already been said.
“A moment of weakness.” He finished it for her. “You think I don’t know that? And, just for the record, there’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Isn’t there? Just a month ago I was so sure where the lines were—I drew them myself, remember? Now they’re all over the place. We’re all over the place. It’s…” She took a breath, trying to find the words to voice the impatience and the confusion of it all. “It’s like we’ve gone from zero to a hundred in three seconds. One minute you’re my new business partner, we’ve drawn the lines and set the boundaries. The next you’re living in my house, protector, friend, and who knows what else besides and…and well, I’m not even sure how it happened.”
“Circumstance.” Yet again he made it seem so incredibly simple, except she knew it wasn’t.
“That’s my point. Would we even be here having this conversation if it weren’t for this whole crazy, stupid situation?”
He considered that. She could see him thinking it through, like he wanted to give an honest answer. “I don’t know. But I don’t think it’s relevant. We are here, and I don’t think going back is an option.”
It wasn’t. Bo knew that. She couldn’t even be sure where “back” was. It seemed like some kind of forever ago, beyond memory even. “I don’t want to need you,” she said. And then, because it sounded almost ugly: “I don’t want to need anyone. Needing is what got this whole thing started.”
He looked a little offended. “I don’t think you can lump Dario and I in the same basket.”
“No.” She shook her head. “That’s not what I mean. What I’m trying to say is that…” Voicing it felt suddenly hard, like the truth of it suddenly took on the nature of a cake of soap in the bath, slipping beyond her grasping and never being held for long enough to make sense of it. “Well…if I was to ever… if we… Oh hell, this is insane! What I mean is that need isn’t a good reason to start anything. It’s a place of weakness and—”
“Bo, you’re not making any sense.” He smiled down at her, all charm and humour and gentle affection, and she could feel her heartbeat take an erratic leap.
“I know. Not even to myself.” She laughed, a shaky, half-embarrassed thing that said a lot more than it should have.
“Go to bed,” he said gently.
“Yes.” It was the only sensible thing left to do. She could see that the moment had begun to fade, that common sense had clicked in and she felt grateful for that. It was another thing she liked about him. So why on earth should she suddenly feel disappointed?

Just for fun, because I’m in the mood to celebrate, I’m going to add an ARC of A Thick Black Line to the Classic Romance Revival subscriber’s weekly draw for the last week of June (i.e. the short “two-day” week, 29th and 30th June) making it a double prize – A Thick Black Line and The Look.

To enter, simply go to the CRR blog at http://www.classicromancerevival.com/blog/. Enter your email in the Subscribe2 block in the sidebar and click send. You’ll receive a short story free read, and automatically go into the draw.

See you all again soon. I’m off to celebrate!
Jude