I love discovering new authors, so I wanted my blog to be a place where readers and my author pals could come together. Only we like to do this Speed-Dating style. Check out a new author and her work here every Wednesday, and if the spark is there, you’ll have a match.
This week’s guest: Janet Lee Nye
15 Questions
1. Which character in “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” is your favorite, and what does that say about you?
Bumble, post dental surgery, all roar, no bite. Tall and can reach things.
2. What are some of things you do to work your way through a plot problem?
See above, roar a lot. Boring answer: on the treadmill.
3. Name your favorite author who writes in a genre that you never write.
Neil Gaiman.
4. Cherry cordials or candy canes?
Candy canes, licked down to a dangerously sharp point.
5. How many full manuscripts did you have to write before you were first published?
Oh, lordy. [*pulls off socks so I can use toes for this count*] If I count all the times I took an existing manuscript and rewrote it (change a romantic suspense into a contemporary), the total is six. [*puts socks back on*]
6. In 10 words or less, give your best tip for aspiring authors.
The closer you get, the bigger the disappointments. Don’t quit.
7. Lifetime Christmas movies. Yea or nay?
Nay.
8. What was the lowest point in your writing career, and how did you recover from it?
2014. I missed being a finalist in the Golden Hearts by one point, and there were only two finalists in my category. I was considering quitting but went to RWA Nationals and my tribe kicked my butt back into the game. [Note from Dana: The Golden Heart Award, sponsored by Romance Writers of America, is the premier contest for unpublished romance writers.]
9. Are you traditionally published, self-published or a “hybrid” author, and why did you choose that path?
Traditionally published. Mostly because I’m not computer or marketing savvy enough to properly self-publish.
10. “O Holy Night” (Josh Groban version) or “White Christmas” (Bing Crosby version)?
I’m more of a “Holly Jolly Christmas” kind of girl.
11. Which character from one of your own books do you wish you were more like?
I think I’d have to say Lena Reyes, Sadie’s best friend in Spying on the Boss. She has her own book coming out in April. She is strong, smart, sassy and fierce when it comes to family and friends.
12. What is your strategy for writing over the holidays?
Depends. I’m a nurse, so I work on holidays. If I’m not working at the hospital, I may squeeze in a few words. We aren’t big party people so our holidays tend to be rather low-key.
13. Of all the delightful treats available during the holiday season, which one would you prefer to hide in a closet so you don’t have to share it with anyone?
Peppermint bark.
14. Do you belong to a critique group, and how has that membership affected your writing?
No. I was part of a writer’s group many years ago, but I was the only romance writer there, so I felt pushed to be “literary”, and it hurt my writing. Now, I have my Fella give me feedback (he is a writer also).
15. What is your usual New Year’s Resolution, and how quickly do you usually break it?
Which one? Go to the gym at least four times a week? Drink more water? Eat more healthfully? Start dressing like a grown up? Don’t wear pajamas all day?
***
Boss on Notice
By Janet Lee Nye
“Hey, neighbor,” Josh called.
She tried not to look, but how could she not? He was too good looking. That black curly hair and the blue eyes. His shoulders, his chest, his arms…he was built but he didn’t try to show it off by wearing a shirt two sizes too small for his body. She bit her bottom lip, felt it slip back into her mouth as she watched him. Those jeans. Levi’s. Straight forward working man’s jeans. Nothing fancy. She felt warm in all the wrong places.
“Hi,” she said.
Short, sweet, to the point. Get out of here before he offers you a ride. She pushed the stroller but he met her at the sidewalk. He squatted to look at Ian.
“Hey, little man. What big adventure are you off to today? Going to break in to a few more houses?”
“Go! Go! Go!” Ian shouted back.
“Sounds like a plan.”
“Sorry,” she said. “Shouting seems to be the only volume he has these days.”
He stood and smiled at her. “You guys always seem to be on the go.”
“Yep. That’s us. Busy, busy, busy.”
He looked at her. Then at the duffels. Then at the street. He rubbed his jaw, the stubble there making a faint scratching noise that went straight through her. She squared her shoulders.
“Yeah. I should get back to work.”
Work. Whoa. Wait. What was it that lady had told her on the phone? He was here setting up a cleaning business. She could clean.
“You’re hiring?”
He gave her a look. A half smile. “Yeah, but…”
“Can I apply? I don’t have any experience other than cleaning my own house. But I’m a fast learner. And I’m not afraid of hard work.”
“Mickie,” he said, cutting off her babble.
“What?”
“We are an all-male cleaning company. That’s our gimmick. Good looking guys cleaning your house.”
“Oh.” She was too disappointed to say anything else.
“Sorry.”
“It’s okay. Nothing ventured and all. Well, I should get going.”
She could feel him watching her as she navigated down the sidewalk to the street. All male. Weren’t there, like, discrimination laws about stuff like that? She tried to get angry about it but she couldn’t seem to think around the echoes of the scrape of his fingers against the stubble. Her own fingers twitched on the stroller handles. She’d like to run a finger over that stubble.
***
Boss on Notice, an installment in The Cleaning Crew miniseries, may be purchased through these retailers: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Harlequin and Books-A-Million.
***
About Janet
Janet Lee Nye is a writer by day and a neonatal nurse by night. She lives in Charleston, SC, with her fella and her felines. She spends too much time on Twitter and too little time on housework and has no plans to remedy this.
Stay in touch with Janet through her website, www.janetleenye.com or through these social-media channels: Facebook and Twitter. Learn more about Janet and her fellow Harlequin Superromance authors on the Superromance Facebook Page or the Superromance Authors Blog, www.superauthors.com.
Thanks Dana! This was so much fun.
Thanks for appearing, Janet. I love learning new things about each of you.
Beautiful cover! Loved the interview!