Tag Archives: author interview with Renee Blare

Wednesday Writers Welcomes Renee Blare

01 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by in Author interviews, Guest Authors, Wednesday Writers

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BeastofStratton_eBook (1) (333x500)Today, Wednesday Writers welcomes Renee Blare. Renee is offering a digital copy or signed paperback copy of Beast of Stratton to one person who leaves a comment on her post between today and noon on April 7.

 

Renee, please tell the readers about the book that is being showcased today.

Beast of Stratton’s my debut novel and inspired by Beauty and the Beast. This book’s a romantic suspense with a taste of mystery. Relatively short at a little less than 150 pages in length, it moves quickly and will keep you flippin’ until the last word.

  How did you come up with the concept for this book?

My crit group, Rough Diamond Writers actually came up with the idea. No, not for  Beast, but to write novellas based on fairy tales. I chose Beauty and the Beast (my favorite) and started writing. Since I love romance and lean toward suspense, the story  grew from there.

What are you working on now? Do you have a release date for this book?

Beast of Stratton’s available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and various other retailers in e-copy and paperback. My next book, To Soar on Eagle’s Wings will be released by Prism in July. Where Beast of Stratton took place among the high rises of New York City, To Soar’s nestled in the isolated wilds of Wyoming. Both are contemporary inspirational romances though.

Are you a fast writer or a slow writer? What’s the most number of pages or words you’ve ever written in a day? The average number per writing session?

This is a tough one for me. I work as a pharmacist so my writing schedule is rather crazy. When I work my nine hour (or ten) hour days, I don’t get much writing done at all. During my days off, I can write up to two to three thousand words in a day. Otherwise, I average around a thousand.

Most writers love books—our walls are lined with them. Name 3 favorite writing craft books on your shelves, 3 fiction books (and the genre), and if you have them, 3 different magazines you read regularly.

My go-to writing books are The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi, The Little Red Writing Book by Brandon Royal, and The Elements of Style by Strunk, White, and Kalman. Fiction books which I read and read and read again are The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis (Children’s fantasy), The Left Behind Series by LaHaye and Jenkins. (Suspense), and Airport by Arthur Hailey (Disaster). As for magazines? I don’t read many of those unless you can count Pharmacy Times or Drug Topics. But I write for an international online women’s magazine, Sybil. I’m determined to spread the word of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth…one word and a time.

Do you know the meaning of your name? If so, does it fit you?

In reality, my name’s French, and yes, I use an accent when I sign it. 😉 I believe the meaning fits me perfectly since I’ve been offered a new life in Christ, and my name means “reborn.”

We like to travel. Choose What is the farthest place from your home that you have visited?

The Bahamas. We’ve been there twice now. When I say I love the beach, I mean I LOVE the beach. I guess the southern part of me still lingers in there somewhere.

Bahama Lazy river

Bahama Lazy river

 

Quickies:

Favorite food? Cheesecake…with or without topping (usually without). I’d prefer homemade if I can get the oven to work right. Who doesn’t like cheesecake (gasp!)?

Favorite singer or band? Michael W. Smith…I’ve liked him for a long, long time.

Favorite season? Spring…the snow melts, trees bud, and the bitter cold of winter fades away. It’s a time of renewal.

Favorite flower? The yellow rose…it means friendship and that’s where love begins.

Favorite color? Purple…especially when I look across a high meadow and it’s blanketed with purple wildflowers.

Purple Wildflowers

Mug or teacup? MUG…hot chocolate with a heap of whipped cream…of course.

 

It’s been a pleasure having you here today. As you say goodbye, can you leave the readers with an encapsulation of your life’s philosophy? (a quote, a Bible verse, a precept you live by or have tried to instill in your children?)

This verse has seen me through many hard times and continues to do so today.

 

Matthew 6:34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

 

This quote, as well as the support of my family, propels me onward in the face of what appears to be insurmountable odds.

 

“Whether you think you can or you think you can’t–you’re right.” Henry Ford

 

Now for an excerpt from the Beast of Stratton

He appears the beast but she sees his heart.

Architect Aimee Hart, determined to locate her father, infiltrates Miles Stratton’s engineering firm as a secretary. Her presence wrenches the shaggy, wounded man from his penthouse, and the quest begins.

He’s been betrayed by his best friend. Miles would rather hide than help, especially his daughter. But it isn’t over. Someone’s trying to destroy Stratton Industrial. A war veteran, he knows how to defend his own, the Beast of Stratton can do it again.

 

BEAST OF STRATTON

 

EXCERPT

Copyright 2015 © Renee Blare

 

He’d vanished.

She’d called his friends, the family. She’d even tried her stepmother who’d hung up on her. Well, okay, maybe that wasn’t the brightest idea.

A red rose rolled across her father’s tattered note, caught in the breeze from the open window. Sliding the pane down, she picked up the flower. The words on the page blurred as she buried her nose in the soft petals.

Instead of saying goodbye to his wife in his last letter, he’d simply left explicit instructions not to follow him. Aimee snorted. Like the woman would care. He’d sent it with the rose and an antique necklace. She held the thick chain aloft and peered at the golden key spinning in the light. The jewelry had probably cost a fortune.

And her stepmother was nowhere to be found. Scratch that. According to her, she wanted to be left alone. It didn’t make a difference to Aimee what the letter said and to whom, she’d follow. A small smile worked its way to her lips as she fastened the necklace around her neck.

The zipper stuck on the edge of the suitcase and she gave it a hard jerk. Dragging the bulging bag off the bed, it hit the floor with a thunk. She slid her arms into her jacket and looped her purse over the handle. She dropped the rose, and it landed beside her plane ticket next to her wallet. Before latching her fingers around her bag, she tucked the key under her shirt out of sight. “Stratton Industrial, here I come.”

 

Available for purchase: Amazon

 

Renee Headshot1 (300x240)

About the Author:

Raised in Louisiana and Wyoming, Renee started writing poetry in junior high school and that, as they say, was that. After having her son, a desire to attend pharmacy school sent her small family to Laramie and she’s been counting pills ever since. While writing’s her first love, well, after the Lord and her husband, she also likes to fish and hunt as well as pick away on her classical guitar.

Nestled against the Black Hills with her husband, crazy old dog and ornery cat, she serves the community of northeastern Wyoming as a pharmacist and pens her Christian stories, keeping them interesting with action and intrigue, of course. She loves to interact with readers and invites you check out her website, blog, and social media.

 

 

About the Blog:

Renee’s Inspirational Moments: https://reneeblare.wordpress.com/

Tagline: Faith for the Journey

The Life of a Christian Writer…highlighting Christian Fiction through Inspirational Moments, Guestposts, Author Interviews, and Book Reviews.

Matthew 6:34 (NIV) Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

  • I blog to spread the good news of the Lord.
  • When I’m not blogging, I’m spending time with my family, writing, or working.
  • I have a passion for Christ.
  • I want to be remembered for my love for the Lord!