Callie Carmen

I met Callie through Facebook as I was gathering in authors. I hope you’ll enjoy her interview!

Author Bio

I gave up a rewarding career as a senior book buyer to become a stay-at-home Mom. I had come home from work one day, and I found that the caregiver taking care of our children had slapped my oldest child age four at the time on the side of her head. The next day I went into work and gave my two-weeks notice.

I have always been an avid reader. As my children became young adults, I found I needed more in my personal life than being the volunteer Mom at the local schools. I sat down at the computer one day and book one Patrick, of the Risking Love series, was born.

I am lucky that I found my soul mate and married him. Like my characters, I am a firm believer in true love.

Tell us about yourself

I grew up in a small New England farm town. I spent a great deal of time in the summer months on a lake in a boat reading while waves gently rocked me. In the spring and fall, it was back to the farm town where I’d take long walks in the woods, find the perfect spot, and sit and read or draw the things I was surrounded by. Trees, birds, rabbits, flowers and rolling hills.

I moved to the Midwest for my job, as a senior book buyer, and found myself in a foreign way of communicating. On the east coast, you learn at an early age to get right to the point. State the facts, possible solutions, make a decision, and then you went and got done what needed to be done as quickly as possible.

Here in the Midwest, I was a fish out of water. Not because of the town we live in. That is lovely a small farm town similar to the one I grew up around. But I found that they like to talk around the actual problem at hand and have meetings to discuss the last meeting. Only to one day finally, get to why you were really there to solve that one issue. 

That was so hard for my husband to deal with in the auto industry.  He took to saying, “You’ll have to excuse me. I’m from New York, and there we get right to the point. So please don’t think me rude; it’s just the only way I know how to be.”

I found that funny because of course he could have changed and done things the way they do here in the Midwest. He just chose not to. I’m sure they were shocked by this at first, but they’ve gotten used to him over the years.

When did you know you wanted to be an author?

This may sound strange to so many authors out there who knew at an early age that they wanted to be writers, but for me, it wasn’t until my youngest child was in his last year of high school. All of the volunteer work I’d been doing around our schools here was coming to an end as most of it revolved around the book fairs, band, and the sports my children had been involved with.

So one day I sat down in front of my computer and wrote a love story that was near and dear to my heart. Much of it was fiction, but there was a good deal of my love story with my husband and myself. So the words just flowed out onto the pages. I remembered one of my English professors in college saying write what you know, so I did. I enjoyed it so much that I just kept on going until I got four and a half novels completed. Then asked myself now what do I do with them. I submitted Patrick, book one to four publishers and was lucky to have Black Velvet Seductions pick it up as well as the rest of the series.

What genres do you like to read?  Are these the same genres you write in?

I used to read pretty much any novel that had something to do with the law. For example: John Grisham novels, but a few years back I started reading romance novels.  I’ve been hooked ever since. All of my books are romance novels.

Is your book for adults, young adults or children?

For adults. All of my books are love stories with a happy ending. The lovemaking scenes are hot and spicy.

What is your current release or project?

NICOLAS Book Two in the Risking Love Series it is on pre-order for only 99 cents until the publication day of 3/14/19

Tell us about the key characters

Carlie comes from a life of poverty. She works hard in college and at her job to get away from that depressing life. She has no time to start a relationship, so when Dr. Nicolas Antonis shows interest in her, she turns him away.

Nicolas comes from a successful, outgoing Greek family. He has three hot and sexy brothers. My Beta Readers have already told me that I have to do another series that revolves around the Antonis brothers especially the brooding brother Damon. Nicolas has no intention of following the two-year plan that Carlie is so bent on pursuing. His plan includes her becoming his.

What is your blurb or synopsis of the book?

Carlie planned to finish at the top of her class, get a corporate job, and work her way up the ladder. She refused to risk having a life of poverty ever again. Within her plans, there was no room for a relationship. So she had sworn off men; especially the good Dr. Nicolas Antonis.

Nicolas had other plans. They included her becoming his.

As if Nicolas wasn’t a big enough distraction; Carlie had to worry about her roommate’s, abusive ex-boyfriend, coming for her too.

Share an excerpt

Carlie

I turned back to the dance floor, and to the man I’d been watching. He moved a beautiful woman around like they had been dancing together for years. I hoped that wasn’t the case. Anyone who could move their hips the way he did, and glide a woman around with the ease he did, had to be an amazing lover. I imagined what it would be like to have sex with him and not have to fake an orgasm. My body heated.

Faking it had been required most of the time with my ex. But this man might be worth a bit of my study time. I fanned myself just as he made eye contact with me. I felt a shiver up my spine.

Of course, I shouldn’t have been having such thoughts. Being out with my friends for a bit of fun before diving back into my studies should have been all that concerned me. I’d learned my lesson in junior college that having a boyfriend interfered with my studies. Now, I had straight A’s with just two semesters to go. Thank goodness the transfer credits didn’t affect my GPA. My plan to graduate at the top of the class was definitely in reach. Any distraction could jeopardize that goal.

Yet, as he left the dance floor alone, I couldn’t help but wonder who he’d dance with next.

Nicolas

I’d gone to the club just to blow off some steam after another long medical residency shift at the local hospital. Besides long distance running, dancing was my favorite way to leave work behind. As I spun the woman in my arms around the dance floor, a gorgeous woman with sandy blond hair, dressed in a conservative pencil skirt and white blouse, caught my eye. She watched my every move. The more she watched, the more I wanted it to be her in my arms. When our eyes met, it felt like I’d been punched in the gut.

I wasn’t at the club to meet anyone. I was far too busy trying to impress the powers that be at the hospital. There was only one surgical position available—and I wanted it. It was down to one other resident and me, and I’d already decided I’d do whatever I needed to do to make sure the position was mine. Being a surgeon—saving lives—had been all I’d ever wanted. If I got to do it right here in my hometown, near my close-knit family, all the better.

As the song ended, I thanked the young lady for the dance and then went in search of the woman I’d been drawn to. She was too neat and tidy, with perfect hair, perfect makeup, and a professional outfit. It was almost business attire, except for the killer black stilettos and the extra unbuttoned button showing the start of her cleavage. I headed down the crowded aisle toward where I had last seen her. As I searched, I reminded myself that I was not in the market for a relationship.

Then I spotted her and observed those wary, beautiful blue eyes—and knew I was lost. I made my way through the sea of Friday night partiers. The closer I got to her, the faster my heart raced.

I had dressed in a dark navy suit, and I could see her taking in every inch of my attire. Hopefully, the spark that flashed in her eyes as she looked into mine meant that she liked what she saw and felt the intense attraction between us. I straightened my tie and gave her a slow, sexy smile.

Her eyes darkened.

When we were just inches apart, I took her hand, and spun her around. “My name is Nicolas Antonis. What’s yours?”

She cleared her throat. “If you must know, it’s Carlie Keith.”

Her sharp tone may have turned another man off, but not me. I wanted her.

“Carlie, this next song is ours.”

I tugged her toward me and started for the dance floor. The closer we got, the more she seemed to hesitate. I stopped abruptly and turned to see why she was straining to get away. But then she must have changed her mind, because instead of wrenching away she moved forward and fell into my arms.

Her eyes squeezed closed, and her arms wrapped around me. I told myself that I kept her tight against my body to keep her from falling. What I was actually doing was seeing if my touch could melt a bit of her coolness.

Her eyes fluttered open, and the heat coming from them nearly burned me. I was sure what they were saying was, ‘My name is Carlie Keith. Please take me.’ The fire building between us was melting her frost.

I leaned in and whispered against her ear, “What’s wrong? Don’t you like dancing?”

Her eyes drooped closed, and she gasped as a strand of hair on her neck stirred in the slight breeze created by my breath. Her reaction caused my dick to get semi-hard, and I still hadn’t moved away.

She exhaled and bobbed her head. “Yes, I do, but I’m afraid of looking foolish; I can’t do what you were doing.”

“So you were watching me?”

Do you have a favorite scene?

When Carlie meets Nicolas’s family for the first time. It is at their Greek Restaurant. The entire Antonis family is there to meet her. Carlie is overwhelmed by this, but thanks to plenty of ouzo and Nicolas’s hot brothers she ends up having a good time.

What advice would you give a beginner?

This might not be advice that newer writers want to hear, but it is essential for you to be as successful as possible. Set up your social media sites right away that means before you even finish your first book. That is not to say that it is ever too late to do this just that it has to be done. If you don’t advertise to let people know about your book how will they know that it exists? Once they are set up advertise your books regularly. Set up social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Tumblr, Instagram, MeWe, Website, and Goodreads to name a few. Pick three to start and master those before moving on to others, or you will be too overwhelmed.

Read the genre you want to write in. This is important so you can understand what works and doesn’t work in that genre. Of course, keep reading other types that you enjoy too.

Write about things you know, you like, and the words will come to you more easily. If you write about something that you are not familiar with be sure to do plenty of research, so your story is believable.

Do yourself a favor don’t have several named characters in your book because as soon as the editor gets their hands on it, you will be editing a lot of them back out again.

Social media links:

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011326206882 https://www.facebook.com/CallieCarmenAuthor/

Twitter https://twitter.com/Callie_Carmen

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/calliecarmennovel/

MeWe https://mewe.com/profile/5aea84c00dc9f110e68a9373

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17829431.Callie_Carmen

Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/callie-carmen-72ba98156/

Tumblr https://calliecarmenauthor.tumblr.com/

Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/calliecarmennovel/

Website link https://www.calliecarmen.com/

Purchasing links

Patrick (Risking Love Book 1) 

https://amzn.to/2D2BJFF

https://books2read.com/u/3krqEW

Nicolas (Risking Love Book2)
https://amzn.to/2GkldCD
books2read.com/u/mqVGQv

Box set (including both Patrick & Nicolas)

Craving Loyalty

http://getBook.at/CravingLoyalty